Ef 





1813 




c, mt&szJ?. 



THE 



STATE OF INNOCENCE, 



AND 



THE FALL OF MAN 



DESCRIBED IN 



MILTON'S PARADISE LOST. 



RENDERED INTO PROSE; 



WITH HISTORICAL, PHILOSOPHICAL, AND EXPLANATORY 

NOTES. 



FROM THE FRENCH OF THE LEARNED R. DE ST. MAUR. 



BY A GENTLEMAN OF OXFORD 







TRENTON: 

PUBLISHED BY WILLIAM ROBINSON, AND JOHN C, MOORE 

WILLIAM & DAVID ROBINSON, PRINTERS, 

1813. 






t\ 



CONTENTS. 



BOOK I. 



Chap. I.~The whole subject is proposed, Man's disobedi- 
ence, and the loss thereupon of Paradise where- 
in he was placed. The prime cause of his fall. 
Satan with his angels now fallen into hell de- 
scribed, lying on the burning lake. After a 
certain space Satan calls to him who lay by 
him. They confer of their miserable fall - ll 

Chap. II. — Satan awakens all his legions, who lay until 
then confounded; they rise. Their numbers. 
Array of battle. Their chief leaders named, 
according to the idols known in Canaan and the 
countries adjoining 27 

Chap. III. — Satan, though sensible of the diminution of 
his glory, directs his speech to the fallen an- 
gels, and comforts them with hope yet of regain- 
ing heaven. Then tells them of a new world, and 
a new kind of creature to be created, accord- 
ing to an ancient prophesy, or report in hea- 
ven; and threatens the Deity: which the rebel- 
lious angels all assent to - - 53 

Chap. IV. — The associates of Satan build Pandemonium, 

and the infernal powers sit there in council 68 



iV CONTENTS. 



BOOK II. 

Chap. I. — The consultation begun, Satan debates concern- 
ing another battle, in order to recover heaven: 
proposes to search the truth of that prophesy 
in heaven, concerning another world and new 
creature. Their doubt who should be sent on 
this difficult search. Satan, their chief, under^ 
takes alone the difficult task, is honoured and 
applauded » - - - - - 78 

Chap. II.— -The council thus ended, the rest betake them 
several ways, and to several employments, 
as their inclinations lead them, until Satan 
returns ....... 89 

Chap. III. — Satan passes on his journey to hell gates; 
finds them shut, and who sat there to guard 
them, by whom at length they are opened; and 
discover to him the great gulf between hell and 
heaven ---'--»- 96 

Chap, IV.- — With what difficulty Satan passes the gulf 
directed by Chaos, the power of that place, to 
the sight of this new world which he sought 107 



BOOK III, 

l 

Chap. L— .God sees Satan flying towards this world, fore- 
tells his success in perverting mankind; and 
declares his purpose of grace thereupon - 110 

Chap. II. — The Son of God on his Father's declaring 
that divine justice must be satisfied for Man's 
sin, freely offers himself a ransom for them; 
which the Father accepts - - - - 120 

Chap. III. — Satan lights upon the convex of the world's 
outermost orb, where he first finds a place since 
called the Limbo of Vanity r - 128 



CONTENTS. v 

Chap. IV. — Satan comes to the gates of heaven; his pas- 
sage thence to the orb of the sun; where he 
finds Uriel the regent thereof, and upon inqui- 
ry is directed to the habitation of Man - 135 



BOOK IV. 

Chap. I.— Satan, in prospect of Eden, falls into many 
doubts with himself, yet journeys on to Paradise, 
which is described ----- 149 

Chap. II. — Paradise described; Satan's first sight of Adam 
and Eve, at which he is greatly surprised; over- 
hears their discourse, and from thence meditates 
their destruction 155 

Chap. III. — Uriel warns Gabriel, that some evil spirit 
had passed by his sphere. Night comes on, 
Adam and Eve discourse of going to their rest: 
their bower described and evening worship - 16S 

Chap. IV. — Gabriel appoints two angels to Adam's bow- 
er; who find Satan at the ear of Eve; they bring 
him to Gabriel; Satan's behaviour thereon, and 
flight out of Paradise - 175 



BOOK V. 

Chap. I. — Eve relates to Adam her dream; they come 

forth to their day labour: the morning hymn 185 

Chap. II. — Raphael is sent to admonish Man of his obe- 
dience, comes down to Paradise; his appear- 
ance described: Adam discerns his coming; goes 
to meet him, and brings him to his bower; where 
Raphael performs his message - - - 19 1 

Chap. III. — Raphael tells Adam who his great enemy is, 
informs him of Satan's first revolt, and what 
was the occasion thereof, Abdiel forsakes Sa- 
tan and his party - 203 



vi CONTENTS, 



BOOK VI. 

Chap. I. — Raphael relates how Michael and Gabriel went 
forth to battle against Satan; the first fight de- 
scribed 215 

Chap. II. — Satan and his powers retire under night, he 
puts Michael and his angels to some disorder 
in the second day's fight, but they overwhelm 
both his force and his engines - 226 

Chap. III. — The tumult not ending, God sends the Messi- 
ah his Son, who alone overcomes his enemies; 
drives them out of heaven, and returns with 
triumph to his Father - - - - 233 



BOOK VII. 

Chap. I. — Raphael tells Adam how and why the world 

was first created 243 

Chap. II. — God sends his Son to perform the work of cre- 
ation; which the angels celebrate: his reascen- 
sion into heaven - . ■<• ' - r - . - 248 



BOOK VIII. 

Chap. I. — Adam inquires concerning celestial motions: is 
doubtfully answered, and exhorted to search 
rather after things more worthy of knowledge 265 

Chap. II. — Adam assents to the advice of Raphael, and 
being still desirous to detain him, relates what 
he remembered since his own creation - - 270 

Chap. III.— Adam relates his first meeting and nuptials 

with Eve, his discourse with the angel - 277 



CONTENTS. vii 



BOOK IX. 



Chap. I.— Satan having compassed the earth, with medi- 
tated guile returns by night into Paradise, and 
enters into the serpent sleeping - - - 285 

Chap. II.— Adam and Eve in the morning go forth to their 
labours, which Eve proposes to divide in several 
places, each labouring apart: Adam endeavours 
to dissuade Eve therefrom; but not prevailing, 
at length consents - 292 

Chap. 111. — The serpent finds Eve alone; approaches and 
speaks to her, with many wiles and argu- 
ments induces her to taste the Tree of Know- 
ledge forbidden: she resolves to impart there- 
of to Adam - - - - - -297 

Chap. IV. — Eve brings of the fruit to Adam, he eats also; 

the effects thereof on them both - - 313 



BOOK X. 

Chap. I. — The guardian angels leave Paradise on Man's 
transgression: God thereupon sends his Son to 
judge the transgressors - 327 

Chap. II. — Sin and Death make a bridge over Chaos, and 
travel from hell to earth: Satan arrives at Pan- 
dsemonium, and in full assembly relates his suc- 
cess against Man - 334 

Chap. HI. — The proceedings of Sin and Death; God fore- 
tells the final victory over them, and the renew- 
ing of all things; but for the present commands 
several alterations to be made in the elements 349 

Chap. IV. — Adam bewails his fallen condition; Eve en- 
deavours to appease him, but does not succeed. 
He exhorts her to seek peace by repentance 357 



viii CONTENTS. 



BOOK XI. 



Chap. I. — The Son of God presents to his Father the 
prayers of Adam and Eve. Michael is sent to 
put them out of Paradise, and reveal future 
things to Adam - - - - - 371 

Chap. II. — Miehael denounces their departure; Eve's la- 
mentation. Adam pleads, but submits - 378 

Chap. III. — The angel sets before Adam in a vision, what 

shall happen until the flood - - . 385 



BOOK XII. 

Chap. I. — The angel relates what shall happen after the 

flood, and foretells the coming of Christ - 419 

Chap. II.— Adam recomforted, descends the hill with Mi- 
chael 439 

Chap. III. — Michael leads Adam and Eve out of Paradise; 
the fiery sword waving behind them, and the 
cherubim taking their station to guard the place 445 



THE FIRST BOOK 



OF 



PARADISE LOST. 



THE ARGUMENT 

Proposes the whole subject, Man's disobedience, and the loss 
thereupon of Paradise wherein lie was placed. Then touches 
the prime cause of his fall, which was Satan in the serpent; 
who revolting from God, and drawing to his side many le- 
gions of angels, was by the command of God, driven out of 
heaven with all his crew into the great deep. Which action 
passed over, the author hastes into the midst of things, pre- 
senting Satan with his angels now fallen into hell deseribed ? 
not in the centre (for heaven and earth may be supposed as 
not yet made, certainly not yet accursed) but in a place of 
Utter darkness, most fitly called Chaos: here Satan with his 
angels lying on the burning lake, thunderstruck and aston- 
ished, after a certain space recovers, as from confusion, calls 
up him who next in order and dignity lay by him; they con- 
fer of their miserable fall. Satan awakens all his legions, 
who lay till then confounded; they rise, their numbers, array 
of battle, their chief leaders named, according to the idols 
afterwards known in Canaan, and the countries adjoining. 
Satan, though sensible of the diminution of his glory, directs 
his speech to the fallen angels, comforts them with hope yet 
of regaining heaven, but tells them of a new world, and new 
kind of creature to be created; according to an ancient pro- 
phecy or report in heaven, and threatens the Deity, which 
the rebellious angels all assent to. The associates of Satan 
build Pandsemonium, and the infernal peers sit tliera in 
council. 

2 



CHAPTER I. 

The whole subject is proposed, Man's disobedience, and the loss 
thereupon of Paradise wherein he was placed. The prime 
cause of his fall. Satan with his angels now fallen into hell 
described, lying on the burning lake. After a certain space 
Satan calls to him who next lay by him. They confer of their 
miserable fall. 

HEAVENLY Spirit of truth and harmony assist 
me! to write of Man's first disobedience, and of the 
fruit of that forbidden tree, the tasting of which brought 
death and all our woe into the world, and occasioned 
the loss of paradise, till Jesus Christ, a Man far greater 
than Adam, restore and redeem, and once more regain 
a Paradise for us. 

Thou, who from the thick clouds on the sceret top 
of mount Oreb, (a) or, perhaps of Sinai (&) didst inspire 

(a) Oreb, Horeb, or Choreb, Heb. i. e. dryness; for it was a 
desert or dry mountain in Arabia the Stony, where there was 
little or no water, Dent. viii. ±5. Horeb is a part of mount Si- 
nai on the west side; and Sinai lies on the east side of it. There 
Moses fed the flock of Jethro, and there God appeared to him 
first in a burning bush, Exod. iii. 1. 

(b) Sinai, Heb. from Seneh, i. e. a bush, or thorn; because 
these bushes grew thereon in abundance. It is a very steep 
and high mountain in Arabia the Stony, about 156 miles from 
Jerusalem to the south. These are not two distinct mountains 
but one, which is parted into two tops, like Parnassus, Sfc. of 
which Sinai is the highest; having a fair and spacious plain 
between them: that top towards the west is called Horeb, and 
that to the east Sinai. The mountain is round, takes 7,000 steps 
to the top, has some olive-trees, fig-trees, date -trees, Sfc. and 
several chapels, monasteries, cells, and mosques, Sfc. It is 
called the mount of God, because it is a great one; or because 
God appeared thereon frequently to Moses, and delivered his 
law there; by the Turks, Gibol Mousa, i. e. the mount of Mo- 
ses; by the Arabians, Tor, i. e. the mountain. Very much venc- 



\% PARADISE LOST, book ?, 

Moses when a shepherd there, who first taught the chil- 
dren of Israel, how heaven and earth were created from 
the elements, which were till then nothing but a mixed 
and confused heap, and without form. Or if thy pre- 
sence be more revealed on mount Sion, (c) or by the 
brook of Siloa, (d) which runs down from thence to the 

ration is still paid to tins mountain, on account of that ancient 
and extraordinary holiness, when the Almighty appeared upon 
it to Moses, 

(c) Sion, Zion, or Tzion, Heb. i. e. a watch tower; because 
it is the highest hill thereabout, and from it one might see the 
Holy Land far and near, A mountain on the north side, and 
some part of it within the city of Jerusalem, surrounded with 
steep sides, high rocks, and deep ditches, except on the north 
side; therefore it was very strong. Some of the Jebusites (part 
of the old Canaanites) defended it against all the force of the 
Israelites, Josh. xv. 63. until the valiant king David took it 
from them; there he fortified the old castle, built the Upper 
Town, surrounded it with new walls, and called it the city of 
David; there he kept his court and retinue, 2 Sam. v. 6. There 
were many fair buildings and houses of his officers, especially 
his house of Cedar-wood, which he called the Castle of Sion, 
and the Sepulchre of king David, Solomon, Sfc. within a rock: 
some of their ruins are to be seen still. It is elegantly describ- 
ed, Psal. xlviii, by Josephus, Sands, <J*c, Sion was also called 
the Mount of the House of the Sanctuary, and Milo, i. e. 'plenty; 
because there was abundance of all good things for David's fa- 
mily, and those of his nobles. Sion was also a type or figure 
of the church of Christ, Heb. xii. 22. 

%* Obs. Mount Moriah and mount Sion stood directly in the 
centre, and mount Calvary without the north gate, in the Old 
Jerusalem, and at a considerable distance : but now mount Sion 
is without the walls upon the south side, and mount Calvary 
almost in the middle of it. 

(d) Siloe, Siloah, Siloam, SJdloah, Heb. i. e. sent; for it was 
a brook or spring of water gliding softly down mount Sion, on 
the east side of the Temple of Jerusalem, and at the bottom of 
it made a pool, which was sent from God, at the prayer of 
Isaias, a little before his death, and when the city was closely 
besieged; as a blessing or gift, to cure many diseases among his 



ghaf. i. PARADISE LOST. 13 

temple where thy oracle is placed, I intreat the influ- 
ence of thy Spirit from thence, to aid me in treating of 
this difficult subject, seeing I must elevate my style, 
above the best poets, and discourse of such high, and j| 
sacred things, as have never been attempted before, 
either in prose or rhyme. Instruct me, for thou know- 
est, thou, who preferest an upright and pure heart be- 
fore all temples: Thou wast present from all eternity, 
and moving on the great deep didst infuse vital heat, 
and as the dove when she warms eggs into life make 
nature prolific. What is dark in me do thou enlighten, 
and raise, and support me, where I am too low and 
weak, that I may assert the wisdom and justice of eter- 
nal Providence, in a manner worthy the subject I have 
undertook to write on, and so justify thy ways to men. 
Taught by thee (for the highest heaven nor lowest 
hell hide nothing from thee) let me relate what was the 
cause that moved our first parents, when they were 
placed in so happy an estate, and favoured so highly 
of heaven, to lose obedience to their Creator, and trans- 
gress his command, when he had laid on them but one 
restraint, and given them power over the whole world 
besides: and who it was that first seduced them to that 
foul rebellion: It was the chief of the fallen angels (e) 

people. Herein a blind man washed Ms eyes at Christ's com- 
mand, and received his eye -sight, John ix. 7. There a tower 
was built over it, by the fall of which 18 men were killed, 
Luke xiii. 4. 

(e) Angels: All the modern languages of Europe borrow this 
word angel from the Greek, i. e. a messenger; and the Hebrew 
Malachi signifies the same, because these celestial beings are the 
messengers of God. It denotes their ofiice rather than their na- 
ture. In other words they are called spirits, ministers, gods, 
sons of God, thrones, &c. Angels are pure, intellectual spiritual 
beings, more noble by far than man, the glory and perfection 
of the creation; of all creatures they come nearest to the eter- 
nal Father of spirits, in their spiritual nature and vast perfec- 
tions; which the Almighty makes use of as his servants, to ex- 



1* PARADISE LOST. book i. 

concealed in the form of a serpent, whose fraud, stirred 
up with revenge, and envy, deceived the first mother 
of mankind: before which his pride had occasioned 
him to be cast out from heaven, with all the rest of the 
rebellious angels, by whose assistance he aspired first 
to set himself up in glory above what he was, and ima- 
gined that he might equal himself to the almighty and 
most high God, if he did but strive, and oppose him; 
and with this ambitious aim made war in heaven, and 
fought against his government, absolute power and do- 
minion, with proud battle, but the attempt was in vain, 
for the power of the Almighty cast him down from the 
heavens, with most dreadful ruin, and burning, down 
to the bottomless pit, and everlasting destruction, where 
he was doomed to live, in such pains and bondage, as 
are best expressed by chains and fire; who had the 
presumption to defy, and set himself against the omni- 
potent Creator of all things. 

As long as would seem many days and nights to 
mortal men, he lay with his horrid companions, totally 
subdued, and restless, as if they had been rolling in a 
fiery gulf; for though they were immortal spirits, yet 
were they confounded: but his doom was to be reserv- 
ed to more wrath, for now the thought of the happiness 
he had lost, and the lasting pain which had seized, 
tormented him, and speaking after the manner of men, 
lie cast his sorrowful eyes around, which shewed that 
he was dismayed, and very much afflicted; but not so, 
but that he retained stedfast hate, and inflexible pride. 
At once, as far as it was in the power of an angel to 
discern, he perceived the dismal situation, that it was 
waste, and wild, and his idea represented to him a hor- 

ecute his orders through the whole creation, although he stands 
in no need of their services. Angels of the presence: and so they 
are called Shinan, i. e. second: because they are second or next 
to God, Psal. Ixviii. 17. Here, Satan who had once been an 
holy, but is now an apostate and rebellious angel. 



eHAP. i. PARADISE LOST. 15 

rible dungeon, that flamed round on all sides, like a 
great furnace, and yet there seemed to be no light, but 
only perceptible darkness; in which terrible sights of 
woe might be discovered; regions of sorrow, shades of 
hell, where peace and rest could never have habitation, 
where hope the only comforter never comes, but end- 
less tortures urge continually, and a fiery deluge, fed 
with what always burns, and never consumes: This 
place eternal Justice had prepared for those rebellious 
angels, and here given them their portion, farther re- 
moved from the light of heaven, and from God, than it 
is from the centre (f) three times to the farthest pole, 
(g) -that but oh! how unlike was this place from that 
he fell from! There he soon discerned the companions 
of his fall ovenv helmed as with floods and whirlwinds 
of tempestuous fire; and weltering by his side, one that 
was next himself in power, and next in wickedness, 
who a great while afterwards was worshipped in Pa- 
lestine, (h) and called Beelzebub, (i) to whom the arch- 

(/) Centre; Fr. Ital. Span. Lat. from the Gr. i. e. a point, 
an astronomical T. The middle point of a circle. Here, the 
middle point of the earth, i. e. three times as far from heaven 
as the two poles are distant from the equator, whieh is a vast 
distance indeed. 

(g) Pole; Fr. Lat. Gr. i. e. turning round. An astron. T. 
The two ends of an imaginary circle, on which astronomers say 
the world turns round from east to west daily. The poles are 
two, the Artie or north pole; and the Antartic or south pole. 

(h) Palestine; Heb. i. e. sprinkled with dust and sand; be- 
cause it is a very dry land. A country of Asia upon the Me- 
diterranean Sea. It was called, 1. Canaan, from Canaan the 
son of Ham; 2. Philistcea or Palestine, from a mighty people 
descended from Mizraim, another of his sons, Gen. x. 14. who 

(i) Beel-zebub, Baal-zebub, or Bel-zebub; Heb. i. e. The 
Lord of flies; either because the people believed, that he drove 
away and destroyed flies, which very much infested them; or 
because multitudes of these vermin swarmed about the blood of 
the sacrifices offered to him. He was worshipped first at Ba- 



46 PARADISE LOST. book t. 

enemy (who thenceforward in heaven, was called &a~ 
Ian (k) breaking the horrid silence with bold words thus 
began to speak: 

If thou art he, who in the happy kingdoms of light, 
cloathed with excessive brightness, didst outshine 
millions of the other angels, though they were bright! 
If misery hath now joined with me in the same ruin, 
him whose united thoughts, and counsels, whose equal 
hope, and hazard with mutual league, joined with me 
once in the glorious enterprise: how art thou fallen and 
/ ; changed! Thou seest into what pit, and from what 
height we are thrown down; so much stronger He proved 
with his thunders, and till then who had ever known 
the force of those fatal arms? And yet not on the ac- 
count of those, or what the powerful Conquerer in his 

inhabited some part of it. 3. Tlie land of promise; beeause God 
promised to. give it to Abraham and his posterity, for an inher- 
itance. 4. Judea; from Judah, whose offspring had it long in 
possession. And 5. the Holy Land; because it was honoured 
with God's extraordinary presence, worship, mereies, blessings, 
miracles above all countries upon earth; and with the nativity, 
life, actions, and doctrine of the holy Jesus and his apostles. 
The Jews expelled the Philistines for their abominable idolatry 
and other crimes; the Romans demolished those; the Saracens 
and Turks have been masters of it these thousand years past. 
# Obs. That though idolatry was practised all the world over, 
yet our author mentions this nation in particular; because the 
idols hereafter described, were chiefly worshipped in it. 
bylon, and then every where; but chiefly by the people of Ekron, 
3 Kings i. 2. Here it is the name of one grand prince of the 
devils, and next to Satan; our Saviour calls him the prince of 
the devils, Matth. xii. 24. 

(k) Satan; Heb. L e. the adversary. The very prince of all 
devils. As there are different orders and degrees of the holy 
angels, so there are still among the wicked ones: their chief 
prince is called Satan, Bel-zebub, the old serpent, &c. for as 
every good angel is not a Michael or a Gabriel; so every devil 
is not a Satan, a Lucifer, &c. And a kingdom is ascribed to 
him, Matth. xii. 26. Eph. ii. 2. 



chai>. i. PARADISE LOST. 1? 

greatest anger can inflict else, do I either change, or 
repent of that fixed mind (though my outward lustre 
may seem diminished) nor of that high disdain which 
arose in me from a sense of injured merit, that raised 
me to contend with him who is called Mightiest, and 
brought along to the fierce contention, a numberless 
force of armed spirits, who durst disapprove of his go- 
vernment; and preferring me, with adverse power op- 
posed his utmost power, in a doubtful battle fought in 
heaven, in such a manner as shook his throne. What 
though we have suffered some loss? we have not lost 
all, our will still remains unconquered; immortal hate, 
and study of revenge yet remain, and a courageous reso- 
lution never to yield or submit, that glory his greatest 
wrath or power shall never extort from me (what other 
proof needs there, that we are not overcome?) To bow 
and petition for grace, and with supplications and bend- 
ed knees, acknowledge a power to be infinite, and di* 
vine, who so laiely had reason from the terror of my 
power to doubt the continuance of his dominion: that 
would be low indeed, that would be worse disgrace, 
worse shame and ignominy than this downfal. Since 
we have (as well as he) by fate (/) the strength of gods, 
and the substance of which Ave are, is immortal and 
cannot fail; since by this last great event we have gain- 
ed much experience and foresight, and for opposition 
still are not worse, we may now make a resolution (and 
hope well for success) to make either by force or fraud 
eternal and irreconcileable war upon our great Enemy; 
who now indeed triumphs in the excess of joy, and 
having no competitor arbitrarily holds the tyranny of 
heaven. 

(/) Fate; Fr. hat. i. e. the. speech or decree of God. A word 
much used by the stoics, and other heathen philosophers for the 
providence of God: the eternal and unchangeable course of thingg, 
the unalterable law of nature, destiny. 
3 



IB PARADISE LOST.. 



BOOK I. 



Thus vaunting aloud spoke the. apostate angel, 
though he was in great pain, and stung with tortures 
of the deepest despair; and his intrepid companion 
Beelzebub soon replied: 

Great prince! chief of the many throned powers, (m) 
that lead the seraphim {n) to war in order of battle un- 
der thy conduct, and fearless, brought into danger the 
perpetual King of heaven, and put his high supremacy 
to the proof; whether he be upheld by strength, by 
chance, or by fate, I see too well and am grieved for 
the sorrowful event, that with foul defeat and sad de- 
struction hath lost us heaven, and with horrible over- 
throw, thus low, laid all this mighty host, as far as 
gods, and heavenly beings can perish; for the mind 
and spirit remain invincible, and vigour soon returns; 
though all our glory is extinct, and our happy estate 
here swallowed up in endless misery* But what if our 
Conqueror (whom I now by force believe to be al- 
mighty, since nothing short of omnipotence could have 
overcome such force as ours) hath left us this our spi- 
rit, and this our strength entire, only to enable us to en- 
dure our pains; that so we may afford satisfaction to 
his wrath, or do him greater service, as his captives by 
right of war; whatever his business may be, either to 
work in fire, here in the midst of hell, or do his errands 
m the dark and gloomy deep? Then what can it avail, 
that we feel no decay of our strength; or is eternal being 

(m) Powers; Fr. from the Lai. Such angels as have ability, 
authority, might and force in heaven. Here, such princes 
among the fallen angels, who still retained that . high order 
among themselves, which they had before their fall. 

(to) Seraphim and seraph, Heb. i.e. burning and flaming like 
fire, to shew the vast love and zeal of those blessed spirits to 
C-.od. In serjptnre this word denotes holy angels of the first 
order of the celestial hierarchy. Here, Satan, who had been 
®tlc of -that .high and happy order* 



«H A r, r. PARADISE LOST. |$ 

a good, only to undergo eternal punishment? Whereto 
Satan, breaking in upon his discourse, replied: 

Fallen cherub! (o) to be weak is to be miserable, ei- 
ther acting or suffering; but be certain of this, that to do 
any thing good will never be our business, but our only 
glit always to do ill, as being directly contrary to his 
high will, whom we oppose: so that if his providence 
seeks out of our evil to bring forth any good, it must be 
our labour to pervert that end, and still to find means of 
evil out of good; which may often succeed, so as perhaps 
shall molest him (if I fail not) and hinder his most secret 
designs and councils from their intended aim. But look, 
the angry Conqueror hath recalled his (p) ministers of 
pursuit and vengeance back to heaven; the fiery hail, 
that was shot after us in a storm, is now blown over, and 
hath laid the burning ilood, which from the precipice 
of heaven received us as we fell, and the thunder which 
broke on us, following red lightning with violent force, 
perhaps hath spent its shafts; for now it ceases to bel- 
low through the great and boundless deep: then let us 
not slip the opportunity, whether scorn or satisfied fury 
yield it us from our enemy. Dost thou see yonder dis- 
mal plain, wild and comfortless, a seat of desolation 
and without light, except what the glimmering of these 
livid flames casts pale and very dreadful? thither let us 
repair from off the violent and painful tossing of tliese 
waves of fire; there let ns rest, if any rest can be had 
there, and assembling our afflicted powers again, con- 
sult how we may henceforward most annov our great 



(o) Cherub, in the singular number, and cheruhim in the plu- 
ral, Heb. L e. fullness of knowWgv. angels of the first order 
first mentioned, Gen. iii. 2-1. They were represented in the taber- 
naele and temple in human shape, with two wings, Exod. xxv. 
18. 2 Chrcn, iii. 10. 

(/;) Ministers; Fr. Lett, servants. Here, the executioners of 
God's vengeance upon these rebels: the holy angels. .See i^&lin 
<iii. 20. 



20 PARADISE LOST. book i, 

foe, how repair our own loss, Iioav overcome this dole- 
ful calamity, what new strength and courage we may 
gain from hope, and if none from thence, what resolution 
we may gain from despair. 

Thus Satan liejst talking to Beelzebub, with his head 
lifted up above the waves, and glancing his eyes from 
side to side; as for his other parts, he lay extended in 
a melancholy condition, floating in length and breadth 
over a vast space of the abyss; as large in bulk as those, 
whom fables have named of prodigious size, as (q) Ti- 
tanian, or earth-born, who is said to have made war 
on Jove; Briareus, or Typhon, (r) who was buried in a 

(</) Titanian, like to Titan, Lot. Gr. from the Hen. i. e. earth 
or mud. The fable is thus. Titan was the elder brother of Sa- 
turn, he gave the right of inheritance to him, upon condition 
that none of his male children should live; so the government 
should return to hiza and his issue. But finding that Jupiter, 
Neptune, and Pluto were brought up secretly, he with his sons 
made war upon Saturn; took him, his wife and children pri- 
soners, until Jupiter came to age, who defeated Titan with his 
thunderbolts, and punished the Titans in hell and other places. 
The truth of this story is taken from the old giants, the build- 
ers of Babel, Gen. xi ? 2. The giants' war is described by the 
poets with all might, terror and greatness; but our author has 
beautifully improved it here and in his sixth book, in the sup- 
posed war of the fallen angels against God. 

(r) Typhon or Typheus; Heb. and Phrenic, i. e. an inunda- 
tion , Gr. i. e. an inflammation or smokeing; because he was 
thunderstruck by Jupiter, A monstrous giant, half man, half ser- 
pent. His head, they say, reached to heaven, his hands from 
one end of the eartli to the other, and he blew lire out of his 
mouth, These two were the chief of the giants. In the war 
with the gods they heaped mountains upon mountains, and bat- 
tered heaven with huge rocks and islands plucked out of the 
sea: Jupiter struck him with thunderbolts and laid him under 
mount iEtna. By this fable they meant the winds which blow 
from one end of heaven to the other, and from it to the earth; 
Jupiter's conquering him signifies, that the sun moderates and 
tempers the winds. 



chap. i. PARADISE LOST. 21 

cave by ancient Tarsus; (s) or Leviathan, (t) which God 
created the largest of all the creatures that swim in the 
ocean; (who sometimes sleeping on the German sea, 
which washes Norway, (u) Greenland, and Iceland, the 
pilot of some small skiff, ready to sink in the night, 
mistakes for some island, and, as mariners relate, fixes 
anchor into his scales, and moors by his side under the 
lee, while night covers the sea with darkness, and 
keeps off the desired morning) in such manner lay 
Satan, prodigiously stretched out and huge in length, 
chained upon the burning lake; nor had he ever risen, 
or lifted his head from thence, but that the will and 
high permission of the all- ruling power, left him at 
large to his own dark purposes and designs; that with 

(s) Tarsus: In a cave near this city Typhon was buried, ac- 
cording to some authors, whom our author follows; but others 
say it was under mount iEtna. Strabo says, that Anchiale and 
Tarsus were built by Sardanapalus, the last emperor of the Assy- 
rian monarchy, about A.M. 3242, both in one day: and that Tar- 
sus excelled Athens, Alexandria, and Rome for polite literature. 

Tarsus; Lat. Gr. from the Heb. i. e. searched or found out. 
The chief city of Cilieia, in the Lesser Asia upon the river Cyd- 
nus, founded by Tarshish the second son of Javan, Gen. x. 4. now 
called Terasse and T arsis, about 304 miles from Jerusalem to- 
wards the north. It is famous for the flight of Jonas the prophet, 
for being the birth place of St. Paul, and many other learned men. 

(t) Leviathan; Lat. Gr. from the Heb. i. e. a heap of ser- 
pents; as if many serpents were gathered together into one, to 
make up that one huge creature: some take it to be the whale, 
but the whale hath no scales; others the crocodile or alligator. 
It is beautifully described, Job xli. 15. 

(ji) Norway; Sax. i. e. the north way. A country on the 
north of Europe, about 1300 miles in length, and 260 in breadth. 
Here the German Ocean, which washeth Norway, Greenland, 
and Iceland: the whales live in these cold northern seas, and 
also in the cold coast of Pateegonia, near the Straits of Magel- 
lan, in great abundance; but rarely in the warm, because of 
their excessive fatness: for they would melt and be parboiled 
in hot waters. 



2£ PARADISE LOST. book r. 

repeated crimes lie might heap upon himself damna- 
tion, at the same time that he sought to bring evil upon 
others; and might he mortified to see, how all his ma- 
lice only served to bring forth grace, infinite goodness 
and mercy, shewn to Man, who should be seduced by 
Iiim, but upon himself wrath, vengeance poured out, 
and threefold confusion. 

Thus permitted, he raises up his mighty stature from 
off the pool, and driving the flames backward on each 
hand, they roll in pointed spires, and leave in the mid- 
dle an horrid vale: then with outstretched wings he flies 
upward, floating along upon the dusky air, that never 
before had borne such a weight; at length he alighted 
upon dry land, if that may be properly called so, that 
ever burned with solid, as the lake did with liquid lire; 
iha colour of which was as when the force of pent-up 
subterranean wind, removes a hill torn from (x) Pelo- 
rns, or the shattered sides of thundering mount iEtna; 
(y) whose combustible and bituminous entrails from 

(.r) Felorus; Lat. Gr. Ileb. and Phcen. A pilot; or Gr. from 
Pelorns an African pilot, whom they say Hannibal slew and bu- 
ried, supposing he had betrayed him; but finding his mistake, 
he erected a statue for him in a high place near the sea, which 
he called Peloris. It is one of the three promontories of Si- 
cily, on the north side, about a mile and a half from Italy, now 
called Capo di Faro, Ital. i. e. the cape of the light-house. But 
here it is taken for the whole island of Sicily, which is very 
subject to earthquakes. 

Q/) JEtna; Lat. Gr. from the Ileb. Mhina, i. e. & furnace, a 
chimney, or JEtuna, i. e. a mist; because of the perpetual smoke 
ascending from the top of it. Pindar, an ancient Greek poet, 
calls it a celestial column, from its height, being the highest 
mountain there; on the top of it one may see all the island, and 
to Africa. A volcano, or burning mountain on the east side of 
Sicily, about 6 miles ill compass, 100 feet perpendicular, and a 
mile of ascent; which always casts up smoke, flames, ashes, and 
sometimes great stones, liquid metal and sulphur, which de- 
vour all things before it. This mountain has burnt above 3000 



chap. i. PARADISE LOST, 23 

thence catching fire, working with mineral force, as- 
sists the winds, and leaves a parched and singed-up 
bottom, mixed with stench and smoke. ]STo better rest- 
ing-place than this was found by the unblessed feet of 
Satan, who was immediately followed by Beelzebub; 
both of them glorying to have escaped from the burning 
lake, which they imputed to their own natural and re- 
covered strength, and not to the permission of God. 

Is this the kingdom? said the fallen archangel, (z) 
Is this the soil, the climate? This the seat that we 
must exchange for heaven? This dismal gloom for that 
heavenly light? Then be it so; since he who is now 
absolute Sovereign can decree and bid what shall be 
right; to be farthest from him is best, since he whom 
reason makes but equal, force hath made supreme above 
his equals. Ye happy fields where joy dwells for ever! 
farewel. Hail horrors! hail this infernal world! and 
thou profoundest hell, farthest from heaven, receive me! 
I am thy new possessor, I am one who bring a mind 
which is not to be changed by time or place; for the 
mind is its own place, and can of itself make a heaven 
of hell, or a hell of heaven. What matter is it where 
I am, if I am still the same, and what I should be, 
only that I am less than he, whom thunder has made 
greater? At least here we shall be free, the Thunderer 

years past, but is not in the least consumed; it hath snow upon 
the top, vineyards and fruitful pastures on the sides, and at the 
bottom. It hath had nine terrible eruptions that we know of; 
the most dreadful were in A.D. 153S, 1669, and 1693. It is 
now called Gibello by the Arabs, i. e. the mountain, by way of 
eminence. Besides this there are divers other voleanos in Eu- 
rope, Asia, Africa, and America, which are caused by the abun- 
dance of sulphur in their bowels. 

(z) Arch-angel, Gr. i. e. an a rch or principal angel, who has 
power over others. See Dan. viii. 16. Luke i. 19. Rev. xii. 7. 
Here, Satan. And probably he is the only arch-angel that is 
©ut of heaven. 



24* Paradise lost. book i. 

hath not built this place for his envy, lie will not drive 
us out from hence, we may reign secure here, and if I 
am to make my choice, I should think it worth my am- 
bition to reign, though but in hell; thinking it better to 
reign in hell, than to serve in heaven. But why do we 
let our faithful friends, the numerous companions, and 
copartners of our loss, lie thus astonished on the gulf 
of burning fire, and not call them to share with us their 
part also in this unhappy habitation, or with reunited 
arms to try what may be yet recovered in heaven, or 
what more is possible to be lost in hell. So spoke Sa- 
tan, and Beelzebub replied: 

Leader of those bright armies, which none but the 
Omnipotent could ever have overcome; if they but once 
hear that voice, their greatest surety of hope in fears, 
and dangers, which they have so often heard in the 
worst extremes, and which in the hazardous edge of 
battle, and in all assaults has been their surest signal, 
they will soon recover, take new courage, and revive, 
though they now lie in extreme misery, and prostrate 
on yonder lake of fire, as we not long since did, aston- 
ished and confounded, which is no wonder, considering 
that we fell from such a dangerous height. 

He had searce done speaking when the superior 
fiend Satan was moving towards the shore; his heavy 
shield of heavenly workmanship, massy, large, and 
round, was cast behind him; the broad compass of it 
hung on his shoulders like the moon, whose orb the 
Tuscan (a) artist (b) views through optic glasses in an 

(ft) Tuscan; one of tlie Tusci or Hetrusci; the ancient peo- 
ple of Tuscany in Italy, that came from Phoenicia, but Justin 
says from Lydia, L. 20. The Latins had long wars with them, 
and at last conquered them under Servius Tullus, the 6th king 

(6) Artist; Ft. Lot. One that is skilled in any art or science: 
Milton means Galilseo Galileei, an excellent astronomer, and na- 
tive of Florence, the capital of Tuscany, chief philosopher and 



chap. t. PARADISE LOST, 25 

evening, from the top of Fesole (c) or else in (d) Val- 
darno, to discover mountains, rivers, or new lands on 
her globe; the tallest pine hewn on the mountains of 
Norway, to be a mast for the ship of some great admiral, 
were but little in comparison of his spear, with which 
lie walked to support his uneasy steps over the burning 
sulphur (not like his former steps in heaven) and the 
heat of hell smote on him sore besides, for it was sur- 
rounded and covered with fire; nevertheless he endured 
it, until he came to the brink of that inflamed sea, 
where he stood and called his legions, angelic forms, 
who lay intranced and confounded with their fall; as 
thick as leaves in autumn, that fall into the brooks in 

of Rome. It is now a fine country, subject to the grand duke 
of Tuscany, in extent about 144 miles. It was called Hetruria 
now Tuscany, and the people Tuscans or Hetrurians. 

mathematician to the grand duke of Tuscany; who invented those 
glasses whereby he discovered spots in the sun, mountains, ri- 
vers, &c. in the moon; the nature of the milky-way; the vari- 
ous appearances of Saturn; many new stars about Orion and 
Cancer; and 62,500 stars, whereof 63 only appeared to the bare 
eye. For these useful discoveries he was imprisoned five years 
by the Inquisition, condemned by Pope Urban VIII. forced to 
reeant at 60, and died at 78 years of age, A. B. 1642. But that 
first invention was owing to Roger Bacon, fellow of Martin- 
College of Oxford, long before Galileeo. And others ascribe it to 
Mr. James Metius of Amsterdam. But Galilseo brought it to 
vast perfection. 

(c) Fesolce; vulg. Fiessole and Fiezzole; called Fessalse by 
Tit. Livius, Pliny, and Silius Italicus. It was an ancient city 
of Tuscany near Florence, the residence of the Tuscan augurs, 
who taught the old Romans their superstitious divinations, sa- 
crifices, &c. Here the great Galileo resided, and made his as- 
tronomical observations from the top of the towers thereof. 

(d) Valdamo; Ital. from the Lat. i. e. the valley on the river 
Amus. It is a fruitful vale on the river Arno, which runs 
through Tuscany and by Florence into the Tuscan sea. 

4 



28 PARADISE LOST. book *. 

Yalombrosa, (e) where the trees cover over and shade 
the stream; or like scattered sedge afloat, when (/) Ori- 
on, attended with boisterous winds, hath vexed the 
coast of the Red Sea, (g) whose waves overthrew Bu- 
siris (h) and his Memphian (i) horsemen and chariots, 

(e) Vallomhrosa; Ital. Lat. i. e. a shady valley; a fruitful and 
pleasant valley in Tuscany, full of shades and fruitful trees. 

(/) Orion; Lat, from the Gr. i. e. urine or tempest. An As- 
tron. T. It is a southern constellation of thirty stars, rising 
on the 9 th of March, and setting in November; and bringeth 
storms and rain with it. See Job ix. 9. Amos v. 8. Some call 
Orion the god of the winds. 

(g) Red-sea; Heb. It is so called from Esau or Edoin, be- 
cause of the red-coloured pottage which he purchased of Jacob; 
for his dominions lay along that sea, and from him the country 
was called Idumea, i. e. red: and so the old Egyptians called 
it Rythra, i. e. red, which the Greeks turned into Erythra or 
Erythras, and the Latins into Mare Erythrceum, i. e. the red- 
sea. But in the Hebrew it is called Suph, i. e. the sea of sedge 
or weeds, which grow and float upon it in abundance. This sea 
parts Egypt from Arabia, and therefore it is called also the 
Arabian gulf. 

(Ji) Busiris; Lat. from the Gr. i. e. a manager of oxen; be- 
cause he butchered men like oxen. A cruel tyrant of Egypt in 
the time of Moses, who under a pretence of intreating strangers, 
sacrificed them upon his altars. He built the famous city of 
Zoan or Tanais, and made it the seat of his kingdom. This fa- 
ble signifies that Pharoah, who put the Israelites to a very hard 
slavery like oxen; for which Hercules, the true Moses, destroy- 
ed him and all his attendants in the Red Sea. Some call him 
Amenophis, but others C euchres. 

(/) Memphian; of or belonging to Memphis; Heb. i. e. a po- 
pulous country or great city. In Heb. it is called Moph and 
Noph, which the Greeks turned into Memphis. This great city 
was built, as some say, a little before the flood; and being af- 
terwards repaired and enlarged, it became the royal city of 
Egypt, until the time of the, Ptolomies, who resided at Alexan- 
dria; because it was built by Alexander the Great. It was a 
great city, seven leagues in circuit; because in length of time 
fpur cities became one; and stood on the west side of the Nile. 



chap. ii. PARADISE LOST. 37 

while with treacherous hatred they pursued the Israel- 
ites, who from the safe shore beheld their carcases 
floating, and their broken chariot wheels; so thick lay 
these, abject and lost, in a manner covering the flood, 
and in the utmost consternation and amazement at their 
hideous and unhappy change. 



CHAPTER II. 

'Satan awakens all his legions, who lay till then confounded; 
they rise. Their numbers. Array of battle. Their chief 
leaders named, according to the idols known in Canaan and 
the countries adjoining. 

Satan called so loud, that his voice resounded 
through all the hollow deep of hell. 

Princes, (k) potentates, (I) warriors, chief powers of 
heaven, which once was yours, but now is lost; if -such 
an astonishment as this can seize eternal spirits, or 
rather have you chose this place to repose your weari- 
ed virtue in, after the fatigues of the battle, for the ease 
you find to slumber here, as if it were in the blessed 
mansions of heaven; or have ye sworn in this abject 

It was destroyed by the Arabs, as the prophets foretold: and 
out of its ruins they built another on the other side of the river 
called Mcair, Heb. i. e. the city; which the French call Grand 
Cairo, i. e. the great city. Here it is taken for the whole peo- 
ple of Egypt, in the days of Busiris. 

(k) Princes; Fr. Ital. Span. Dut. Lat. i. e. those who take 
the first place; governors, chiefs, ringleaders, principal or most 
excellent persons in a kingdom. Sovereign angels, who have 
the superintendence over princes upon earth, Dan. x. 21. Here 
the chiefs among the devils, Dan. x. 13. 20. 

(1) Potentates; Fr. Ital. Lat. i. e. mighty ones; governors^ 
rulers of nations. Here, some grandees among them. 



28 PARADISE LOST. book i. 

manner to worship the Conqueror, who even this mi- 
nute beholds cherubim and seraphim rowling in the 
flood, with their banners and ensigns scattered, till 
perhaps ere long, those who pursued us out of heaven 
discern the advantage, and descending from above, 
thus drooping as we are, tread us down; or with thun- 
derbolts linked together, transfix us to the very bot- 
tom of this gulf: therefore awake, arise now, or else 
be for ever fallen! 

They heard hini and were ashamed, and sprung up 
upon the wing; as when men w r ho are used to watch 
on duty are found sleeping, by those of whom they 
stand in dread, get up in surprise, and begin to stir 
about before they are well awake. Not that they did 
not see the evil condition which they were in, or feel 
the tierce pain, yet they soon obeyed their general's 
voice, and appeared innumerable; as when the potent 
rod of Moses, in the evil day of Egypt, (m) was 

(m) Egypt; Lat. from the Gr. i. e. the land of the Mgopti^ 
Cophti, and Copti, from Coptus tlie metropolis of Thebais, a 
city mentioned by Strabo and Plutarch; or from Cobtim, the 
people and first king that settled in that country, and of the 
posterity of Ham; or from iEgyptus, the brother of Danaus, and 
an ancient king of it. This monarchy lasted 1,300 years, until 
Alexander the Great. In the Old Testament it is called the 
land of Ham and Mizraim. (Mizraim signifies afflictions, and 
is a prediction of the tribulations the people of God were after- 
wards to suffer there.) The Greeks called it Egyptos, q. Ge 
Coptoon, and Chamia or Chemia, i. e. the land of theCopti and 
of Cham; the Turks and Arabs call it Mizri and Misr. to this 
day. An ancient and fertile kingdom of Africa; having Ethi- 
opia on the south, the Red Sea and Isthmus of Suez on the east, 
the Mediterranean Sea on the north, and the deserts of Lybia 
on the west. It is about 650 miles in length,and 310 in breadth. 
It was peopled soon after the deluge, had kings in the days of 
Abraham, Gen. xii. 10. celebrated for the great skill of the peo- 
ple in polite literature. Nebuchadnezzar vanquished it, Cam- 
byses brought it into the power of the Persians, A.M. 3179. 



chap. n. PARADISE LOST. gg 

stretched forth over the land, and called up a black 
cloud of locusts, (ft) brought on by the eastern wind, 
that over the kingdom of wicked Pharaoh, (o) hung like 

Then it fell into the hands of the Grecians for 300 years. TI:e 
Romans reduced it into a province, and called it Agusta, who 
held it for 313 years. The Saracens, then the Mamalucs, and 
at last the Turks became masters of it. There is little rain, 
but the overflowing of the Nile yearly renders it very fertile: 
so that it was always a granary to Canaan, Arabia, Greece and 
Rome, and is now to Constantinople; though sometimes there 
have been famines there. The harvest is in our March and 
April. The evil day of Egypt was under the ten plagues men- 
tioned Exod. vii. 8, 9, 10, and 11. 

(n) Locusts; Ital. Lat. q. loca ustans, i. e. burning or laying 
places waste. They are mischievous flies, like grasshoppers, 
that destroy the grass, corn, and fruits, wherever they go; very 
common in Egypt, Africa, and other hot countries; they live 
about five months only: but these were extraordinary, both for 
their number and the end for which they were sent. The ninth 
plague of Egypt sent by God to humble that proud tyrant, Pli- 
ny reckons 30 sorts of them; some are three feet long, which 
the Jews, Arabs, Africans, and Americans do eat, see Mat. iii. 
4. Cockburn's journey, p. 58. and says a whole city in Africa 
was laid waste by them; they destroyed part of Germany, Ji.B, 
852. To those Milton resembles the fallen angels for the vast 
multitudes of them; for they come in clouds, about 18 miles in 
length, and 12 in breadth, which eclipse the sun, darken the 
air, cover the earth, make a sad stench when they die, and 
are exactly described, Exod. x. 4. Prov. xxx. 27. and Joel ii. 
2. 12. 

(o) Pharaoh; old Egyptian, i. e. a crocodile; for the people 
worshipped that creature out of fear. Josephus translates it a 
king. Pharaoh was the common name of their kings from the 
beginning to the conquest of Alexander the Great, for 1660 
years, under 47 kings; as that of Abimelech, Heb. i. e. my fa- 
ther the king, among the Philistines; Augustus and C<esar was 
among the Romans; yet many of them had proper names, as 
Sesostris, So, Neeo, Ophra, $c. After Alexander 12 princes 
reigned, who were called Ptolomy, Gr. i. e. warlike, for 300 
years; and Cleopatra, Gr. L e. the glory of the country. She 



30 PARADISE LOST. book i ? 

nighty and darkened all the land of Nilus; (p) as num- 
berless were seen those bad angels moving slowly on 
the wing, under the concavity or hollow canopy of hell, 

was vanquished by Julius Caesar, A.M. 3974. And then Egypt 
fell into the hands of the Romans. This king's proper name 
was Ramases Miamum; who came to the crown 58 years after 
the death of Joseph; and Busiris by the Greeks. 

(jp) Nile; O. Egypt, or contracted from Nabal, Heb. i. e. the 
river; for that language came near to the Heb. and in the Old 
Test, it is called Nabal Mizzam, i. e. the river of the Egyp- 
tians; because it is the chief and only river there; from Which 
the Greeks and the Targtim call it Nilos. It is usual in 
many countries to call their chief rivers so. Thus the Ganges 
in India, thus Meschacebe (which the French call Missisippi) 
from Cebe, i.e. the river; and Mescha, i. e. the great; the Great 
River, The Nile is also called Sehor, Josh. xiii. 3. from thence 
the Ethiopians named it Shieri, Shihri, and Siris, until it passes 
into the confines of Egypt and the last cataract; these words 
are of the same signification in the Ethiopic, and signify black; 
because the waters of it are black and turbid. It is the noblest 
river in all Africa, rising in and running through Ethiopia from 
south to north; it divides Egypt in the middle, waters it all 
over once a year, viz. June, July, August, and part of Septem- 
ber; and discharges itself into the Mediterranean Sea, at seven 
months formerly, see Isa. xi. 15. But only two of them are 
navigable at this time, one at Dainietta, and another at Roset- 
ta; the other five being small ones, filled up with sands or 
artificial canals; after a long course of 1000 German miles, 
and 4000 English. The spring of it was unknown to the an- 
cients, even to a proverb. Alexander the Great consulted 

the oracle of Jupiter Ammon to find it; Sesostris and Ptolemy, 
kings of Egypt, sought for it in vain; and Julius C?esar said he 
would give over the pursuit of the civil wars, if he was sure 
to find it. But now it is known to be in a plain at the foot of a 
mountain in Abyssinia, surrounded with high mountains, from 
two fountains about the wideness of a cart wheel, 30 paces dis- 
tlistant, whose bottoms are 16 or 17 feet deep. These sources 
the Ethiopians call Abain and Saccahela, i. e. the father of the 
waters. The old inhabitants worshipped the Nile, Pharaoh 
paid his devotions to it every morning; and there Moses ad- 






chap, ir. PARADISE LOST, 21 

between fires that were above, below, and on all sides, 
till the spear of Satan their great commander was lift- 
ed up, as a signal given to direct their course: they 
alighted down in exact order on the firm brimstone, a 
multitude greater than ever the populous north, Goths, 
Vandals, Huns, or other barbarous nations, poured 
from her frozen climes of Norway, Sweden, or Den- 
mark, to pass the Rhine (q) or the Danube, (r) when 

dressed him so frequently during the ten plagues; they dedica- 
ted a magnificent temple to it in Memphis, with many priests 
and rites, because they thought it was the sole cause of all their 
plenty. But Constantine demolished it, and dispersed the 
priests; whereat the poor infidels made grievous lamentations, 
saying, the river would desert them for ever. It overflows some 
parts of Ethiopia, and all Egypt every year, which is caused 
by vast snow and rains falling upon these mountains of Ethio- 
pia, which being melted by the heat of the sun, render the ad- 
jacent countries most fruitful; other rivers do the like. 

(q) Rhene, or Rhine; Teut. i. e. pure, because of the clear- 
ness of the waters; or Gr. i. e. the flood or river; because it is a 
vast one. A large river in Germany, rising in the Alps, parts 
France and Germany, and after a long course of 1000 miles, 
throws itself into the German ocean, in two large mouths near 
the Briel; therefore Virgil calls it Bieornis, i. e. having two 
horns or passages. 

(r) Banaw, Banow, Danube, and by the natives, Tonaw, 
Teut. i. e. thunder; because of the thundering noise of its ra- 
pid current and three grand cataracts. Or Banubius, Lat. q. 
Banivius. i. e. snowy, from the abundance of snow that falls 
upon the adjacent mountains, and swells the river; or from Da- 
nai, an ancient people that are said to have dwelt thereabouts. 
A grand river in Europe; it riseth in Suaben, runs through 
Germany, Bavaria, Austria, Hungary, Bulgaria, &c. into the 
Euxine sea in 6 or 7 mouths (but only two are navigable) after 
a course of near 2000 miles, wherein it receives 60 other rivers, 
whereof 30 are navigable. It is very broad, and 200 feet deep 
in divers places; and abounds with many large islands and villa- 
ges. At the confines of Illyrieum it changes its name, and for 
400 miles is called the Ister, q. Ester, contracted from Es- 



/ 



32 PARADISE LOST. book i. 

her barbarous sons came like a deluge into the south, 
and spread beneath Gibraltar, (s) as far as the utmost 
limits of Afrie. 

Forthwith the heads and leaders from every squad- 
ron and every band haste where their great commander 
stood; godlike shapes and forms, much surpassing the 
beauties and perfections of Man; princely dignities and 
powers, that once in heaven had sat upon thrones, 
though now on the records of heaven there be not the 
least memorial of their names, by their rebellion blotted 
out from the books of life: nor had they got themselves 
new names among mankind, till after a time wandering 
over the earth, through God's high sufferance, and for 
the trial of Man., they corrupted the greatest part of 
Mankind, to forsake their God and Creator, and to 
transform the invisible glory of him who made them, 
oftentimes to the image of a brute; which they adorned 
with gay ceremonies, and rites that were full of pomp ? 
and gold; and sometimes worshipped the devils them- 
selves for deities, who were then known to Men by va- 
rious names, and figured under various images and 
idols through the heathen world. 

treon, i. e. the flood, or river, as I think, for I cannot find the 
original derivation in any author. Dionysius calls it the sacred 
Ister. The country thereabout is called Istria and the people 
Istri. 

(s) Gibralter; Arab. Jlbil Tharek, i. e. the mountain of 
Tharek captain of the Moors, Jl.D. 718, when from Africa they 
invaded Spain, and pitched first upon that promontory, which 
is upon the mouth of the streights between Spain and Africa. 
These streights were formerly called the streights of Hercules 
and of Gades. From that time the Moors possessed Spain 760 
years, until 900,000 of them were expelled by Ferdinand and 
Isabella, Jl.B. 1492. But the Moorish is still spoken in some 
parts of it, and many of their customs and savage dispositions 
continue in the blood of the Spaniards to this day. 



chap. ii. PARADISE LOST. 33 

Their names then being known, it is not difficult to 
say who was the first, who last, that roused from their 
astonishment and the gulf of hell, at the call of their 
great emperor; who next in worth came singly where 
he stood, on the brink of the gulf, while the inferior 
multitude of the fallen angels, promiscuous and assem- 
bled in disorder, stand far distant from him. The 
chief who approached near him were those, who roam- 
ing from the pit of hell to seek what prey they could 
devour on earth, durst (though long after this) fix their 
seats next the seat of God, and their altars by his 
altar; (t) adored as gods among the nations, and durst 
abide the Lord thundering out of Sion, throned between 
cherubim: I nay, they often placed their abominable 

(t) Altar; Tut. But. Fr. Lat. i. e. high; because it was rais- 
ed high above the ground: or to bum; because sacrifices were 
offered upon altars, From the Heb. arar, i. e. to pray or impre- 
cate; or of El, God, and tar, a place appointed for the worship 
of God. A place raised up with stones and earth, whereon 
men sacrificed their oblations to the true God. Altars were 
used for the worship of God by Adam, Noah, and all the patri- 
archs from the beginning of the world, and long before temples, 
Gen. iv. 4, 5. 8. 22, 23. 29. 9, 10. Exod. xx. 24. And from them 
the heathens took the use of altars, whereof they had three 
sorts. 1. Those to the celestial gods, which were as high as a 
man of a middle size might use, and erected upon hills, groves, 
the highways: that of the Olympian Jupiter was 22 feet high. 
2. Those to the infernal, were placed upon a little trench be- 
low the ground. And 3. for the terrestrial deities, which were 
erected upon the ground: but low, flagged with sod, and cover- 
ed with sacred vervaine. Altars were esteemed most sacred; 
for upon them they made their most solemn vows and oaths, by 
laying their hands upon them in a very solemn manner, as we 
find in the practice of Hannibal, &c. See Corn. Nepos, Cicero 
pro Flac. Tit. Liv. &c. They never permitted whores and mur- 
derers to approach them, 



34 PARADISE LOST. book i. 

shrines (u) within his sanctuary, (x) and profaned his 
solemn feasts and holy rites with accursed things, dar- 
ing to affront his light with their darkness. 

First of all Moloch, (y) that horrid king, wet with 
the Mood of human sacrifices, and with the tears of pa- 

(w) Shrines; Fr. Sax. Lat. i. e. desks, cabinets, or closets. 
The Saxons meant thereby closets or temples, like the Lares 
among the old Romans; wherein they kept the reliques of their 
saints, and the latter their gods. In these they made their 
prayers. Shrines were the altars or temples of those idols, 
where these devils were worshipped. Here, the temple of the 
true God was made a repository for those idols; for so Solomon, 
Manasses, and other wicked kings of Judah did. 

(<x) Sanctuary; Fr. from the Lat. i. e. a holy and sanctified 
place. The most holy part of the tabernacle, within the veil, 
and in the west end of Solomon's temple, adorned with two 
cherubims, the ark of the covenant, and the extraordinary pre- 
sence of God. It was unlawful for any man to enter into it, 
but the high -priest only, and that but once in the year, on the 
great day of atonement, which answered to the first of our Sep- 
tember. The most sacred place was called the Holy of Holies, 
*. e. the most holy place, Levit. xvi. 23. 

(y) Moloch, Molech, Milcom, and Melcom; i. e. a king. An 
idol of the Ammonites strictly forbidden the Jews, Lev. xviii. 
21, and xx. 2. The prophets denounced and God executed griev- 
ous judgments upon all the worshippers of it; and no wonder, 
for it was a most infamous idol: 1st, In his assuming the name 
of a king, and robbing God of his sovereignty and glory. 2dly, 
In the inhumanity of the worship paid him. Moloch was a 
hollow statue of brass, with the head of an ox and the hands of a 
man, with seven chapels. It was made red hot, then the priests 
threw the sacrifices into its arms, where they were burnt to death 
in a dreadful manner. The Carthaginians offered 200 children 
of their nobility to it at one time, and 300 at another; which 
made Darius send ambassadors to Carthage, with an edict to 
forbid them that inhumanity. See Justin, hist. L. xix. cap. 1. 
490 years before Jesus Christ. The Americans 5 or 6000 chil- 
dren every year; and one of their kings sacrificed 64,080 men in 
the space of four days, A.D. 1486. He that offered his son 
kissed the idol, Hoa. v. 2. It was the Saturn of the old Ro- 



chap. ii. PARADISE LOST. 35 

rents, though for tlie noise of loud drums and timbrels, 
the cries of their children, who passed through the fire 
to his cruel idol, are scarcely heard; the Ammonites (z) 
worshipped him in Rabba, (a) and the watery plains 
about that city: in Argob, (b) and in Basan, (c) as far 
as the extent of the river Arnon; (d) and not contented 

mans. This devilish abomination was laid aside in Europe by 
the decree of Constantine I. A blessed effect of the Christian 
religion; therefore our author calls it justly horrid, dreadful 
king. It was the sun, and the seven chapels signified the se- 
ven planets, whereof he is the chief. See Macrob. 1. Q. Curt. 
Ii. iv. Diod. Siculus. 

(z) Ammonites; the posterity of Ben-Ammi, Heb. i. e. the 
son of my people. The son of Lot by his youngest daughter, Gen. 
xix. 38. A mighty nation in Arabia Felix, bordering upon Ca- 
naan; but miserable idolaters, and always mortal enemies to 
the people of God; for which God cut them off the face of the 
earth. They dwelt beyond mount Gilead about 96 miles from 
Jerusalem north eastward, and were infamous worshippers of 
this idol, 1 Kings xi. 7. 

(«.) Rabba or Rabbath; Heb. i. e. great. The chief city of the 
Ammonites on the north-east side of Jordan and the river Ar- 
non. It was well watered by the springs of mount Arnon and 
mount Gilead; therefore it was called the city of waters, 2 Sam. 
xii. David took and plundered it, and made all the inhabitants 
slaves. There the brave Uriah lost his life, 2 Sam. xii. 26. 

(6) Argob; Heb. i. e. a lump of earth or gravel. A large, 
very fruitful, and populous country, lying on the east of Jor- 
dan among the mountains, and belonged to Og king of Basan, 
near mount Gilead, Deut. iii. 13, 14. Afterwards it was call- 
ed Trachonitis, Gr. i. e. rocky or stony. See Luke iii. 1. 

(c) Basan, or Bashan; Heb. i. e. in ivory or tooth, because 
it lay between two ranges of mountains, like the tooth of an ele- 
phant. It was also called Perma, Gr. i. e. beyond, because it 
lay beyond Jordan, northward from Jerusalem. A fine fruitful 
country beyond Jordan, from the river Arnon to mount Hermon. 

(d) Arnon; Heb. i. e. a wild ash; because these trees grew 
upon the banks of it in abundance. It is a small river of the 
Moabites on the east side of Jordan, rising in mount Gilead , 
watereth these countries, and runs into the Dead Sea, twenty 



36 PARADISE LOST. book t 

with so near an approach, he led by fraud the heart of 
wise Solomon, -(e) to build him a temple over against 
the temple of God, on a hill just without Jerusalem, 
and made his grove in the pleasant valley of Hin- 
nom, (/) by that reason sometimes called Tophet, (g) 
and black Gehenna, (h) and likened to hell. Next 

miles from Jerusalem eastward. It was the uttermost bounda- 
ry between the Moabites and Ammonites. Num. xxi. 13. 

(?) Solomon, Salomon, or Schelamoh; Heb. i. e. peace or peace- 
able, because he was a peaceable prince, not like his father. 
The son of David by Bathsheba (Heb. i. e. the daughter of the 
oath) the third king of Israel, and the wisest of all mortals, 
since the fall of Adam, 1 Kings iv. 29. Yet he fell into this 
abominable idolatry, and built a temple to this devil, near that 
which he himself had erected to the living and true God, to gra- 
tify his idolatrous wives, 1 Kings x. 5. Ahaz, Manasses, and 
other impious successors followed his shameful example, which 
brought divine vengeance upon them. He was born in the year 
of the world 2971, before Jesus Christ 1029. Built, besides 
other edifices, a famous academy upon mount Sion, where he 
taught philosophy, Prov. ix. 1. And from him Pythagoras, So- 
crates, Plato, Aristotle, Trismegistus, &c. borrowed their prin- 
ciples of philosophy. He reigned 40 years, lived 60, and was 
the saddest instance of human frailty extant; yet he repented, 
was pardoned, and saved. 

(/ ) Hinnom; Heb. i. e. gracious. This was the name of the 
possessor of the valley, which is called also the valley of Ben-; 
hinnom. Heb. i. e. the son of Hinnom. It lies at the foot of 
mount Moriali and mount Olivet, southward. There stood the 
grove of Moloch, wherein they offered children and other sacri- 
fices to this cruel idol. It was also called the valley of To- 
phet, and our Saviour likened it to hell. The valley of Jeho- 
saphat runs across the mouth of it, which is so called, because 
there that pious king was buried. 

(;>) Topliet; Heb. i. e, a drum, because idolaters beat drums, 

&c. to drown the cries of miserable creatures, which were broil- 

/ ed to death in that pit of fire. A cruelty, which God never 

commanded, always abhorred, strictly prohibited, and severely 

punished, Jerem. vii. 31. xix. 5. 

(Ji) Gehenna; Gr. from the Heb. i, e. the land of Hinnom; for 
Hinnom was the lord of it; and Tophet, because idolaters beat 



chap. n. PARADISE LOST. 37 

came Chemos, (i) an obscene idol of which the Moab- 
ites stood in great dread, who inhabited from Aroar (k) 
to Nebo, (m) and to the southermost mountains of Aba- 
drums in the grove of Moloch which stood there. But our Sa- 
viour and others mean the place of the damned thereby, Mat. 
xviii. 9. because of the dreadful torments there. 

(i) Chemos or Kemos; II. Heb. i. e. swift or speedy, from the 
swiftness of the sun, which this idol represented. Others say 
hid and concealed; because of the shameful prostitutions and rites 
of this idolatry. Some take it to be the filthy Priapus of the 
Greeks and Romans. The idol of the Moabites and Midianites. 
It is frequently mentioned in holy writ, and the worship of it is 
very strictly forbidden, threatened and punished. Solomon 
built a temple or high-place for it also, 1 Kings xi. 7. But pi- 
ous Josias destroyed it, 2 Kings xxiii. 13. Chemos shall go 
into captivity with her priests and princes; and Moab shall be 
ashamed of Chemosh, Jer. xxviii. 7. 13. 

(k) Aroar or Jlroer; i. e. heat or destroyed and rooted out; 
because Jephtha won a memorable battle near it, Judg. xi. A 
city of the Moabites on the banks of the river Arnon in the 
land of Gilead, twenty-four miles from Jerusalem eastward, 
Josh. xii. 2. It fell to the tribe of Gad, who repaired and for- 
tified it and other cities; but called them by other names, that 
there might be no remains of idolatry left among them, accord- 
ing to the law, Numb, xxxii. 21. There was another city of this 
name near Damascus in Syria, Is. vii. 

(m) Nebo; Heb. i. e. a prophecy. A city and mountain of the 
Moabites, near to mount Pisgah, twenty miles from Jerusalem 
eastward, on the east side of the Dead Sea, belonging to Sihon 
or Og, very good for pasture and cattle, being a mountainous 
country. Upon the mountain Moses had a fair view of Cana- 
an, died, and was buried, Deut. xxxiv. 1. And there Jeremy hid 
the tabernacle, ark, and altar of incense, in a hollow cave, 2 
Maccab. ii. 5. i| Obs. Nebo, Heshbon, Sibmah, Elealeh, &e. 
were rebuilt by the Reubenites, at the permission of Moses; who 
gave them new names, to destroy all relicts of idolatry. See 
Numb, xxxii. 37. as they were commanded, Deut. xii. 2, 3* 



38 PARADISE LOST. book i. 

rim, (n) in Heshbon (0) and Horonaim, (p) the king- 
dom of Seon, (q) beyond t3ie flowery valley of Sibmah, 
which is covered with vines, and Eleale, (r) as far as 
the pool Asphaltus. (s) Another of these fallen angels, 

(n) Marim; Heb. i. e. bridges or passages; because of divers 
fords over Jordan near to these mountains. A ridge of moun- 
tains lying along the east of the Dead Sea, belonging to Moab, 
which part the kingdoms of the Moabites, Edomites, and Am- 
monites. Nebo, Pisgah, and Peor were several mountains in 
this tract, Num. xxxiii. 47. Deut. xxx. 49. 

(0) Hesebon for Heshbon, Heb. i. e. numbering, thinking or 
instructing; because there was an academy or school. The royal 
city of Sihon or Sehon, king of the Amorites, therefore Sihon is 
called king of Heshbon, Deut. 1.4. It was 20 miles from Jor- 
dan on the east. He had taken it from the king of Moab, but 
Moses subdued him, and divided all his country to the tribe of 
Reuben. This country was well watered and fruitful; for it lay 
between the river Arnon and Jabbock upon the borders of the 
Ammonites, Num. xxi. 26. 

(p) Horonaim; Heb. i. e. the mountains or furies; and in the 
Syriac liberties. Two cities of the Moabites, one was called 
the Upper, and the other the Inferior or Lower, Is. xv. 5, 
There Sanballat, the bitter enemy of Nehemiah, was born, Ne- 
hemiah ii. 10. 

(5) Seon or Siehon, Heb. i. e. rooting up or destroying utter- 
ly; because he was a cruel oppressor of his neighbours. A king 
of the Amorites, who refused the Israelites a passage through 
his dominions into Canaan, which occasioned a bloody war; but 
they vanquished him, and possessed all his country, Num. xxi. < 
21. 32. He had taken Horonaim from the Moabites; therefore 
Milton judiciously calls these cities the realm of Seon. 

(r) Eleale or Elelaeh; Heb. i. e. the ascension or burnt-offer- 
ing of God. A town six miles from Heshbon, belonging to Si- 
hon, beyond Jordan to the east, and thirty-six miles from Jeru- 
salem. It fell to the tribe of Reuben, after the conquest of these 
countries, Num. xxxii. 37. It abounded with vines and other 
good fruits, and was a strong city in the days of St. Jerome; he 
flourished in the 4th century, and died 420. 

(s) Jlsphaltos or Jlsphaltus, Lat. from the Gr. i. e. yielding bi- 
tumen or sulphur. A lake of sulphureous, suit and bitter wa- 



chap. ii. PARADISE LOST. 39 

was Baal-Peor, (t) an abominable idol, who enticed 
the children of Israel in Sittim, (u) on their march 
from Egypt, to do him wanton rites, which cost them 

ter in Judea, where Sodom and Gomorrah stood, thirty-five 
miles from Jerusalem to the east; about twenty-four leagues 
long, and six or seven broad. On the east and south it is enclos- 
ed with exceeding high mountains, viz. Abarim, Nebo, Pisgah, 
Peor; on the north with the plains of Jericho; and on the west 
with the land belonging to the tribe of Judah, Jerusalem, &c. 
It is called the Dead Sea, because no fish live in it; or from the 
heavy stagnated nature of its waters: the Salt Sea, because it is 
of a brackish taste; the Sea of the Plain, the East Sea, because 
it was easterly from Jerusalem. See Joel iii. 20. And the sea 
of Sodom. It is a pool or lake of standing water; for though 
Jordan, Arnon, Jabbock, Dibon, Zered, and Cedron run into it B 
yet it hath no visible discharge. Iron, lead, or any other weigh- 
ty matter doth swim upon the top of it Vespasian threw some 
condemned criminals into the deepest place of it, and manacled; 
yet they rose with such violence as if a storm had sent them up. 
If men or beasts drink of it mixed with water, it makes them 
exceeding sick; and birds that fly over it, fall down dead. This 
pitch resembleth bulls without heads, and is good for pitching 
ships, cables and medicines. Besides Moses, Strabo, Tacitus, 
Pliny, Diodorus Siculus, and other ancient historians have left 
accounts of it, and mostly from him. See Gen. xix. 

(t) Feor, Baal-Peor, and Baal-Pheor; III. Heb. i. e. a naked 
god or lord, or, he that sheweth his nakedness publicly. An 
idol of the Moabites and Midianites, the same as Chemos, the 
beastly and obscene Priapus of the Greeks and Romans. An 
abominable idol, frequently mentioned in holy writ with the ut- 
most abhorrence, as it well deserved. Jeremiah calls it so by 
way of disgrace, ch. xl. 7. This name is more usual than the 
other Chemos. The heathens took this idolatry from the his- 
tory of Noah, when he lay exposed, Gen. ix. 21. A sad original, 
but a worse copy. A mountain that bears his name belonged 
to the Moabites on the east of Jordan; because there was Beth 
Peor, i. e. the temple of Peor upon mount Peor, wherein he was 
worshipped. The Moabites enticed the Israelites to worship 
him, which brought a sad plague upon them, Numb. xxv. 1. 

(u) Slttim or Shittim; i. e. scourges or thorns. A place in 
the plains of Moab, sixty furlongs, or eight miles from Jordan? 



40 PARADISE LOST. book ft 

abundance of woe; yet from thence lie extended his 
lustful festivals^ even to that scandalous hill, which was 
by the grove of murderous Moloch; so fixing lust hard 
by hate, till the good king Josias (x) drove them both 
thence back again to hell. Along with these came 
they who were worshipped from the great river Eu- 
phrates, (y) to the brook that parts Egypt from Syria, 

where the Israelites encamped last under the conduct of Moses; 
and where they were tempted hy the wicked counsel of Balaam 
to commit fornication with the women of Moab, and to sacrifice 
to this devil; which provoked God to destroy 24,000 of them. 
Here grew that wood whereof the ark of the covenant was made, 
Exod. xxv. 10. xxxvii. 1. 

(x) Josiah; Heb. I. e. the fire or zeal of the Lord. The 18th 
king of Judah, the pious son of a very wicked father and grand- 
father. He was a great reformer of religion. He destroyed all 
those ylol-temples and groves, as it was foretold of him by name 
360 years before he was born, 1 Kings xiii. 2. 2 Kings xxiii. 10. 
He began his reign when he was eight yeari of age, Ji:M. 3363. 
Before Jesus Christ 637, arid reigned 31 years; being killed in 
a battle at Megiddo against Necho king of Egypt. Jeremy la- 
mented his death in a divine poem, 2 Chron. xxxv. 25. 

(i}') Euphrates; Lat. Gr. from the Heb. Phrath or Parah, i. 
e. fruitful; because it renders those countries very fruitful, 
which it overfioweth at a certain season yearly. The principal 
of the four rivers of paradise, Gen. ii. 1*. It is the largest in 
Asia, and the most famous river upon earth; rising in the moun- 
tains of Armenia, the Tygris and many more join it; it waters 
Mesopotamia, passeth by and through Babylon, renders many 
countries very fruitful; and after a course of 2000 miles dis- 
charges itself into the Persian ocean. In sacred scripture it is 
called the river, the great river, by way of eminence. It still 
retaineth the old name by a contraction, Jlferat and Frat: the 
water of it is very foul; if it stands in a vessel but two hours, 
the dirt and mud will be two inches thick on the bottom of it 
The poet calls it old, because it is one of the first rivers 
mentioned by Moses, the first and oldest historian in the world, 
So, Old K'ishon, Judges v. 21. 



chap. n. PARADISE LOST. 41 

and had the general names of Baalim (z) and Ashta- 
roth, (a) meaning male and female?, for spirits when 
they please can assume either sex, or both, their pure 
essence is so soft and uncompounded, not confined to 
material joints and limbs, nor depending on the frail 
strength of bones, as flesh is; but in what shape they 
choose, extended or contracted, obscure or bright, can 
perform their spiritual purposes, and do works either 
of love or enmity. For those the Jews often forsook 
the living Grod, and left his righteous altar unfrequent- 
ed, bowing down lowly before idols, even in the form 
of beasts; for which their heads were bowed down as 
low in battle, and they fell by the spears of despicable 
enemies. 

(z) Baalim, and Baal; IV. Heb. i. e. lords and lord. This 
was the first idol in the world, erected at Babylon in memory 
of Belus or Nimrod, whom Ninns his son and successor deified 
after his death; and was worshipped all the world over, though 
under different names, viz. Baal-Berith, Baal-Gad, Baal-Meon, 
Baal-Peor, Baal-Semen, Baal-zebub, Baal-zephon, Sfc. by the 
Greeks, Zeus; by the Romans, Jupiter) by the Gauls, he was 
called Belenus; by the Saxons, Thor: from whence comes our 
Thursday. He was the sun, who is lord of heaven, and most 
useful to all the inferior world, worshipped with magnificent 
temples, altars, invocations, bowings, kisses, sacrifices, Sfc. 

(a) Jshtaroth, or Ashtoreth; V. Heb. Plur. i. e. flocks and 
herds; because sheep, goats, Sfc. were offered to her. A god- 
dess of the Assyrians, Syrians, Phoenicians, Sidoniaus, Cartha- 
ginians, Jews, Greeks, Romans, Sfc. but under different names. 
The queen of heaven, Jer. vii. 18. x\ll meant the moon, as the 
sun was the lord of heaven: These were the first and principal 
deities among all nations. She is Juno and Venus of the Romans, 
Easter of the Saxons, Sfc. because her grand festival was in 
April, the old Saxons called it Easter -monath: from whence we 
call ours Easter, which happens in March or April, as the Jew- 
ish passover did; according to the course of the moon. Baal 
presides over men and all male animals, as being stronger; and 
Jlsktaroth over women and the female sex, which are more weak 
and feeble. 

6 



mi]; 



m PARADISE LOST. book i, 

In the same troop with these came Asioreth, whom 
the Phoenicians (b) call Astarte, (c) the queen of hea- 
ven, and figure her with a crescent, to whose bright im- 
age the virgins of Sidon (d) every night sung by moon- 
light, and paid their vows; which also was often done 
in Sion, wiiere her temple stood, on the offensive moun- 
tain of olives, built by that uxorious king Solomon; 
whose heart, though it was large, beguiled by fair wo- 
men from among the heathen, fell to foul idolatry. 

Next came Thammuz, (e) whose annual wound in 
Lebanon (/) allured the damsels of Syria, to lament 

(b) Phoenicians; Heb. q. Bene-Anak; i. e. the sons of Anak, 
a gigantic man, who with his race inhabited that country. The 
people of Phoenicia, Palestine, or Canaan, called the Philis- 
tines. 

(c) Astarte, VI. Heb. i. e. a flock; from Ashtoreth, according 
to the Phoenician dialect; and one of their goddesses, Astarte is 
Sephora, the wife of Moses, and the moon. 

(d) Sidon; Heb. i. e. Sifish; because of the great plenty and 
riches, which the inhabitants got by the trade of fish: or of Si- 
don the first son of Canaan, who first built it, Gen. x. 15. i. e. 
a hunter. A sea port town, the metropolis of Phoenicia, older 
than Tyre, Carthage, or other cities, which the old Phoenicians 
built upon the Mediterranean Sea. It was taken by the king 
of Ascalon, a year before the destruction of Troy, and 2W years 
before the building of Solomon's temple; then they that escap- 
ed built Tyre, which is 16 miles from it to the south, and 36 
miles from Jerusalem to the north-west. By their great trade 
and wealth, the Sidonians became very proud, idolatrous and 
abominable to God: therefore he frequently punished them; 
now it is very much decayed; as the prophets had foretold. Si- 
don was famous for purple and other fine dyes, as well as Tyre. 

(e) Thammuz; VI. Egypt, from the Heb. i. e. hidden or death ; 
because of the secret, infamous, and obscene rites performed io 
this idol, which was death to utter. Or from Thamuz, Heb. i. 
e. June; because these feasts were kept in June. This goddess 
was Thammuz among the Egyptians, Carthaginians and Jews, 
but Adonis among the Romans, 8fc. 

(/) Lebanon; Heb. from Laban, i. e. white; beeause the ton 
of it appears white with snow: or frankincence; because it 



chap. ii. PARADISE LOST. 43 

his fate in love songs a whole summer's day while the 
smooth river Adonis (g) ran coloured with purple to 
the sea, supposed to be with the blood of Thammuz 
wounded every year; the love tale corrupted the daugh- 
ters of Jerusalem, and warmed them with like heat; 

abounds upon it. A very long, large, and high mountain in 
Syria, about 200 miles in length, from Damascus to the Medi- 
terranean Sea westward, and the boundary of Canaan to the 
north, about 120 miles from Jerusalem. It is famous for cedar 
trees, which grow only there and in some woods of America. 
Some of these trees are 20 yards round, very tall and spread- 
ing. Solomon built his temple of them chiefly; but now they 
are much decayed. Mr. Thevenot reckoned no more than 23, 
great and small, and Mr. Maundrel only 7. On the top of it 
stood a temple of Venus, wherein lewd men and women debauch- 
ed and prostituted themselves most infamously; for which Con- 
stantine the Great demolished it. There is now Canobine, a 
convent of the Maronites, about the same spot of ground. The 
head of it calls himself the Patriarch of Autioch. 

(»*) Adonis; VII. Heb. L e. lord. An Assyrian idol, the same 
as Thammuz. The tale is, this Adonis was a fine youth, the 
son of Cynra king of Cyprus by his daughter Myrrha, beloved 
of Venus and Proserpina, killed by a wild boar upon mount Le- 
banon while he was hunting, and much lamented by these god- 
desses. These women kept a solemn feast at that time, weep- 
ing, lamenting, and beating themselves for his death; after- 
wards they rejoiced at his return to life. The festival of Adonia 
was celebrated through Greece, in honour of Venus and Adonis, 
for two days. See Potter's antiq. of Greece, vol. i. p. 328. 
Adonis is the sun, for six months lie is in the lower hemisphere, 
as in hell with Proserpina; and for the other six months in the 
upper; at which they rejoiced mightily, as they were sorry for 
his declining from them. Here, the name of a river which runs 
down mount Lebanon, and at that time of the year his waters 
are red, which the heathens ascribe to a mysterious sympathy 
in it, for the death of Adonis; which is indeed and only caused 
by the rains, that make it to swell and run over the banks, and to 
wash away some red earth: as Mr. Maundrel testifies; and gave 
occasion to this fable and idolatry. 



44 PARADISE LOST. book i. 

whose wanton passions Ezekiel (h) saw in the sacred 
porch, when being led by a vision, he saw the dark 
idolatries of the alienated children of Judah. 

Next him came one, who mourned in earnest, when 
the captive ark dismembered his brutal image; his head 
and hands being lopt off in his own temple, where he 
fell flat by the side of the door, and shamed his wor- 
shippers; his name was Dagon. (i) a sea monster, like 
a man upward, and downward like a fish; yet he had 
his temple raised high in Ashdod, (k) and was dreaded 

(h) Ezekiel or Jechezekel; Heb. i. e, the strength of God. 
The third of the four great prophets, carried a captive to Ba- 
bylon with Jechonia, when he was young: the son of Buz, a 
very learned priest. Some mistake liim for Pythagoras, the 
ancient heathen philosopher; but he was contemporary with 
him, and learned much from him also. He saw in a vision the 
corrupted women of Israel worshipping this devil, in a porch 
of the holy temple of God at Jerusalem, when he was a captive 
at Babylon. A lamentable sight indeed to him, eh. viii, 14. He 
wrote very mystically, that the heathens might not understand 
his meaning. But reproving the Jews so boldly for their ido- 
latry, they put him to a most cruel death at Babylon, about 
A.M. 3 3 so. 

(i) Bagon. VIII. Heb. i. e. ajish. A god of the Syrians and 
Philistines, who got vast riches by fish; which they ascribed to 
this idol. It was half a fish and half a man. It was the Nep- 
tune and Saturn of the Greeks and Romans, whom they wor- 
shipped in this form; because they got riches from both sea and 
land. 

(k) Azotus or Ashdod; Heb. i. e. laying waste; because it 
was a strong and victorious city; or of Esh, Heb. i. e. 3ijire 9 
and Bod, i. e. the fire of love. A sea port town in Palestine 
between Joppa and Ascalon, 22 miles from Jerusalem to the 
west, and one of the five chief governments of the old Philis- 
tines. This city was so strong, that it held out a siege against 
Psamnitieus king of Egypt, in the time of Manasses, king of 
Judah, for 39 years; and so did also the city of Messina in Si- 
cily for 30 years against the Lacedemonians: these are the 
longest sieges mentioned in history. Judas Maccabeus was slain 



(hap. ir. PARADISE LOST. -15 

through the coast of Palestine, in Gath, (I) and (m) As- 
calon, and Ekron, (??) and the frontiers and bounds of 
Gaza, (o) 

upon M. Azotus, by Bacchides the general of Demetrius, king 
of Syria, 1 Mae. ix. 18. It was a fair and rieli city, but is now 
a poor ruinous place; the Turks call it Alzete, i. e. the village. 
(Z) Gath; Heb. i. e. a ivine-press; because much wine was 
made there, Is. lxiii. 2. One of the chief cities of the Philis- 
tines upon the sea, very rich and powerful, distant from Jeru- 
salem about 34 miles to the west, and famous for the birth-place 
of that giant Goliath, and others of his huge, terrible family, 
which were all cut off by the valiant king David, 1 Sam. xri. 
It was called also Metheg-Ainmah, i. e. the bridle of bondage; 
because it kept the adjacent country in subjection, 2 Sam. viii. 1. 
(hi) JLscalon; Heb. i. e. an ignominious fire; or from As- 
calus a Lydian, who is said to have founded it. Another of the 
chief cities of the Philistines, on the same sea, 30 miles from 
Jerusalem to the west. It was famous for a celebrated temple 
of the idol Dagon there. The Scythians or Tartars in an ex- 
pedition, about 640 years before the incarnation, demolished an 
ancient and stately temple of Venus, and some of them settled 
in it; therefore it is called Seythopolis, Gr. i. e. the city of the 
Scythians, Judith iii. 10. Holofernes laid it in ruins, and so 
did Salad ine in the holy war. But Richard I. king of England 
repaired it, and Joppa, Cesarea, &c. A.I). 1192. The Turks 
call it Scalonia, by a corruption of the word. 

(n) Accaren or Ecron; Heb, i. e. barrenness; because it was 
reared in an unfruitful soil. A city oil the south of Gath, about 
36 miles from Jerusalem to the west. It was once a place of 
great wealth and power, so that it held out a long time against 
the victorious Jews, Judg. i. But now it is a poor despicable 
village. 

(o) Gaza now Gazra; Pers, i. e. the place of treasure; be- 
cause thither Cambyses of Persia sent those treasures, which he 
had prepared for the Egyptian war. But it was called so ma- 
ny ages before, Gen. x. 19. or rather Heb. i. e. a strong tower, 
being a very strong and rich place; and also Constantia, because 
Constantine the Great gave it to his sister Constantia. It stands 
about two miles from the sea on the river Bezor, near Egypt; 
therefore our author here calls it the frontier bounds of those 
countries; 10 miles from Jerusalem towards the south-west, and 



46 



PARADISE LOST. 



BOOK I. 



Rimmon followed him, whose pleasant seat was fair 
Damascus, (p) on the fruitful banks of Abbana (q) and 
Pharphar, (r) two rivers of Damascus, whose waters 

was one of the best cities the old Philistines possessed. Here 
they had a very magnificent temple to their god Dagon, called 
Beth-Bagon, Heb. i. e. the house or temple of Dagon, capacious 
to receive 5000 people at onee, and stood upon two main columns, 
so artfully contrived that Sampson could grasp them in his two 
hands, and pull the whole fabric upon them and himself, Judg. 
xvi. 21. Beth-Dagon stood about 2000 years, until Jonathan 
the brother of Judas Maccabeus set the city on fire, and burnt 
that temple, with all those his enemies, who fled thither for sanc- 
tuary, 1 Mac. x. 34. xi. 4. And so long did a patient Deity 
wink at that wickedness, before he punished them. Alexander 
the Great took this city in two months, but it cost Alexander the 
third son of Hyrcanus a whole year, before he became master of 
it, 1 Mac, xiii. 61, 62. 

[p) Damascus; Heb. i. e. drinking blood; because there Cain 
slew his brother; or the habitation of Sem, because lie dwelt 
thereabout; as also Adam and Eve, when they were expelled 
Paradise, as it is reported: or from Eliezer of Damascus, Abra- 
ham's chief servant, Gen. xv. 2. whom others take to be the 
foiinder of it. The metropolis of all Syria, 160 miles from Jeru- 
salem to the north, very beautiful, pleasant, fertile, and well 
watered by seven rivulets. It is the oldest city upon earth, built 
soon after the flood, and was in the early days of Abraham; but 
mow it is sorely decayed, and called Bamas by the Turks, by a 
contraction of the old name. 

(q) Abbana or Abana; Heb. i. e. stony; because it runs down 
mount Libanus among many rocks and stones; is very rapid, 
ferokd, and turbid. The chief river that runs by the west and 
south .sides of Damascus and through it, into a great lake hard 
by. The fish in it are unwholesome. It is mentioned, 2 Kings 
v. 12. and is the Oront.es in Latin, now Oronz, from the name of 
him who built the first bridge over it. 

(r) Fharfaav, or Parpar, Heb. i. e. fructifying. Another of 
the rivers of Damascus, or rather one of the three arms of the 
Abbana, now the Farfar and CJirysorrhoes, Gr. i. e. running 
with gold, because gold is found in the sands of that river. Some 
say these are but two branches of the Barraday. 



chap. ii. PARADISE LOST. 47 

are very pure and clear; he also was very bold against 
the house of (rod; once he lost a leper, (s) and once he 
gained a king, Ahaz, (t) his foolish conqueror, whom 
he drew to despise God's altar, and displace it, for one 
made like those of Syria; whereon he might burn his 
abominable offerings, and adore the gods that he had 
conquered. 

\^fter these there appeared a crew, who under re- 
nowned names of old, such as Osiris, (it) Isis, (.v) and 

(s) Leper; Fr. Ital. Span. Lat. from the Gr. i. e. a leprous 
man, full of scabs or scales; one that is infected with the lepro- 
sy, Gr. i. e. a burning or very hot disease. Here, Naaman the 
Syrian. This whole history is recorded 2 Kings v. 1. 

(t) Ahaz; Heb. i. e. taking possession. An idolatrous king 
of Judah, and the father of good Hezekiah. He was the XlVth 
king, about A.M. 3205, 762 years before Jesus Christ, and 
reigned 16 years. He caused Uriah the chief priest to set up 
an idolatrous altar, close by the altar of God, whereof he took 
the pattern from that at Damascus, which was strictly forbid- 
den by the divine law. See 2 Kings xvi. 10. 

(u) Osiris. X. An Egyptian word, i. e. a great eye; because 
of his vast wisdom and knowledge. A king and philosopher of 
Egypt, about A.M. 2500, who first taught the Egyptians hus- 
bandry, tillage, &c. for which they built him a temple at Mem- 
phis, and worshipped him under the form of an ox. Some think 
this was Mizraim their father and founder. He is the same as 
Bacchus among the Greeks and Romans; and Adam, wrapt up 
in a fable. 

( ,r) Isis.- XL Egypt, from the Heb. i. e. the woman. The 
wife of Osiris, and queen of Egypt, which were both deified af- 
ter death. They consecrated cows, and the females of all cat- 
tle to her. She was the same as Ceres and Cybele, viz. the 
earth or nature itself, and was worshipped every where; be- 
cause they thought she had invented the use of corn, wine, Sfc. 
Some think they were the sun and the moon. She was full of 
dugs, to signify the benefits that men do receive from the hap- 
py influence of the moon. From these the Israelites made their 
golden calf, and Jeroboam his two idols. She was a memorial 
of Eve. Tiberius ordered her temple at Rome to be demolish- 
ed, and her image to be cast into the Tyber, because her priests 



48 PARADISE LOST, book i. 

Oms, (y) and their train; with monstrous shapes and 
sorceries, abused the fanatic Egyptians and their 
priests, inducing them to seek their gods wandering in 
disguise in the forms of brutes, rather than human; nor 
did the children of Israel escape the infection, when 
the gold, that they had borrowed of the Egyptians, 
was made into the likeness of a calf in Oreb; and Jero- 
boam, that rebel king doubled that sin in Dan (z) and 
in Bethel, (a) likening Jehovah, (b) his Maker, to an 

were very lewd, as Josephus relates. Her temple at Paris was 
destroyed, when Christianity prevailed there; hut her statue 
was preserved in the abby of St. Germain des Pez, to the year 
1514. 

(y) Orus. XII. Egypt, from the Heb. i. e. light. The son of 
Isis, another king of Egypt, deified after his death. He repre- 
sented the sun, presided over the hours, and was the god of 
time: therefore in the old Egyptian language he was called 
Horns, from whence came the word hora, i. e. an hour, in the 
Greek, Latin, and English. The Greeks called him Apollo, i. 
e. a destroyer; because he destroyed many things by the exces- 
sive heat of his rays, or dispersed darkness and clouds by his 
light. 

(z) Ban; Heb. i. e. & judge. A city in the north of Canaan, 
at the foot of mount Libanus, and 104 miles from Jerusalem. It 
Was first called Leshem or Lais, Heb. i. e. a roaring lion; be- 
cause many lions abounded thereabout. When the Danites took 
and demolished it, they called it Dan, in memory of their fa- 
ther, Judg. xviii. 29. and the Canaanites, Leshem-Dan. This 
idolatrous king placed the other calf there, on the other extre- 
mity of his new kingdom, to keep the people more attached to 
himself. 

(«) Bethel; Heb. i. e. the house of God. A city in the tribe 
of Benjamin, eight miles north from Jerusalem. At first it was 
called Luz, Heb. i. e. a nut-tree, because many of them grew 
thereabout. But Jacob called it Bethel, in memory of God's 

(b) Jehovah. It denotes the essence of God, is the peculiar 
and an ineffable and most mysterious name of the Deity, and 
can hardly be translated into any language. Ten names are 
ascribed to Mm in the Hebrew, but this is the chief and most 



CHAP. ii. PARADISE LOST. 49 

ox that feeds 011 grass; Jehovah, who in one night, 
when he passed from Egypt, cut off hoth men and 
beasts (which were the bleating gods that they wor- 
shipped) with one blow. 

Last came Belial, a more lewd spirit than wliom did 
not fall from heaven, or one more gross to love vice 
merely for itself; to him no temple was built, nor did 
any altar smoke; yet who is oftener than he at temples 
and altars? when priests turn Atheists, as Eli's (c) 
sons did, who filled the house of God with lust and 
violence. He reigns also in palaces, and courts, and 
luxurious cities; where the noise of injury, outrage, 
and riot, ascend above their highest towers; and when 
night darkens the streets, then the sons of Belial wan- 
der out, flushed with insolence and wine; witness the 
streets of Sodom, (d) and that night in Gibeon, (e) when 

glorious appearance to him there, Gen. xxviii. 19. In regard 
to that religious ami ancient esteem of the place, Jeroboam 
erected one of his monuments of idolatry there* The prophet, 
780 years afterwards, called it by way of contempt, Beth-aven, 
Heb. i. e. the house of iniquity or vanity, Hos. iv. 15. and Amos 
calls it Aven, i. e. vanity, ch. i. 5. It was called Bethel in the 
days of Abraham, Gen. xii. 8. There was an academy or school 
of the prophets, 2 Kings ii. 3. 

expressive of his infinite nature, if it could be expressed. See 
Psalm lxxxiii. 18. a name that the Jews never pronounced (lest 
it should be profaned) we translate it Lord. Hippocrat. stiles 
it Euormoun, the great mover of all things. 

(c) Eli, or Heli; Heb. i. e. offering or lifting up. A judge 
and high-priest of Israel, about A.M. 2840. He was a good 
man, but too indulgent to his sons, Hophni and Phineas, which 
was their destruction, 1 Sam. ii. 22, 23. He judged Israel forty 
years, and died suddenly, being ninety-eight years old, 1 Sam. 
iv. 15. 18. 

(rf) Sodom or Sedom; Heb* i. e. a plain field. The capital 
of several cities in the plains of Jordan, which God destroyed 
by fire and brimstone from heaven, as a just vengeance upon 

(e) Gibeah, or Gibeon; Heb. i. e. a MIL A metropolitan city 
of the tribe of Benjamin, situated upon a mountain four miles 
7 






50 PARADISE LOST. book i. 

a matron was exposed to prevent a more heinous ini- 
quity. 

These were the chief in power, and in order; it 
would be too tedious to n tme the rest, though some of 
them were far renowned: the gods of Greece, the de- 
scendants of Javan, (/) esteemed as gods, though con- 
fessed to be younger than heaven and earth, which they 
boast to be their parents. Titan, (g) the first-born of 
heaven, with his brood of giants, whose birth-right was 
said to be seized by his younger brother Saturn; (A) 

their idolatry, luxury, and such wickedness as the laws of God 
made to be punished with the most ignominious death, Gen. xix. 
4 Obs. That plain was called Pentapolis; Gr. i. e. five cities: 
because there were so many cities in it, viz, Sodom, Gomorrah, 
Admah, Zeboim and Zoar. 

from Jerusalem towards the north. The citizens were sons of 
Belial, most abominable and wicked wretches, without the least 
fear of God. This was the birth-place of Saul the first king of 
Israel. 

(/) Javan; Heb. i. e. making sad 4 He was the fourth son 
of Japhet, and the grandson of Noah. He and his posterity 
first peopled that part of Greece, which was called Ionia from 
him. So Alexander the Great is called the king of Javan, Dan. 
viii. 21. See Gen. x. 2. And the Tartars call Greece, Javan 
from hence. 

(g*) Titan; XIV. Heb. i. e. born of the earth: because he and 
all these other gods were said to be born of heaven and earth. 
This fable signifies the sun. 

(Ji) Saturn; XV. Heb. i. e. hid, Lat. i. e. a sower or full of 
years, i. e. old: the most ancient of all the heathen gods, the 
youngest son of heaven and earth, whom the poets made the 
grand-father of all the gods, and father of Jupiter. In the 
Greek, Kronos, i. e. the god of time. Titan was his elder bro- 
ther; therefore Milton here calls him, younger Saturn, and in 
another place, old Saturn, because he was tht god of time; which 
was the oldest of them all. Saturn was a wise prince, but un- 
fortunate; for his son Jupiter expelled him the kingdom of Crete, 
from whence he fled into Italy, and taught those people hus- 
bandry, plowing, sowing, and the using of the scythe. Saturn is 



chap. ir. PARADISE LOST. 51 

and he found like measure from mightier Jove, who 
was his son by Ids sister Rhea; (i) so the usurping Ju- 
piter reigned. 

These idols were first known in Crete, (k) and Ida (I) 
and thence upon the top of Olympus, (m) covered Avith 

Adam, who hid himself from God, Gen. iii. 8. or Noah, who was 
the father of men, the inventor of husbandry, wine, architecture, 
navigation, Sfc. 

(i) Rhea; XVI. Gr. i. e. flowing. The daughter of heaven 
and earth, the wife and sister of Saturn, and mother of Jupiter: 
she is called also Sylvia and Ilia. This fable represents Eve 
and the earth, which floweth with the abundance of all good 
things, for the use and comfort of mankind. For the old hea- 
thens worshipped and feared tilings according as they were good 
and useful, or terrible to themselves, as the sun, moon, croco- 
dile; and some adored the devil, that he might not destroy them; 
which the wild Americans do still. 

(k) Crete; Heb. i. e. an archer: because these people were 
excellent archers. At first it was called Curete from the Cu- 
retes, Gr. i. e. shorn; because they cut off all the hair of their 
heads; they came from Palestine. The Greeks call it Heka- 
tompolis, i. e. the island with 100 cities. It is one of the largest 
islands in the Mediterranean sea, in the mouth of the Archipe- 
lago, between Greece and Africa, 240 miles from east to west, 
80 from south to north; about 600 miles in compass; and about 
600 miles from Jerusalem to the west, 600 from Constantinople, 
and 300 from Cyprus. It is now called Candia, i. e. an intrench- 
ment, from the chief town, built by the Saracens, A.D. 82J. 
The Venetians bought it from the marquis of Montserrat, A.D. 
1204. But the Turks took it from them, A.D. 1669. There 
Jupiter is said to be both born, brought up and buried. The 
old Cretians were famous for lying. See Titus 1. 12. which St. 
Paul quoted from Epimenides. 

(/) Ida; Lat. from the Gr. i. e. a prospect: because upon it 
one had a fair view of the whole island of Crete, the adjacent 
countries and seas. A famous mountain in that island, where 
Jupiter was nursed in a cave. It is now called Psilorini, Gr. i. 
e. the little hill: and from it Jupiter is called Ideeus by the old 
poets. * 

(m) Olympus; Lat. from the Gr. i. e. all shining, clear and 
serene. It is the name of several mountains; but here, of that 



5£ PARADISE LOST. book u 



snow; they ruled the middle air, which was their high- 

es^: lisaven; or on the cliff of Delphos, (n) or in Bodo- 
na, (o) wliere oraeles Were; or were dispersed through 
Greece, with all those who with old Saturn tied over 
the Adriatic (p) sea into the west, and roamed over 
the kingdoms and islands of the earth. 

between Thessaly and Macedon: so high, that no clouds or 
darkness appeared upon it, and was covered with snow; there- 
fore it is called cold: the poets used it for heaven; and said that 
Jupiter reigned there, therefore he is called Jupiter Olympius. 
Anaxagoras found it but one mile and a quarter in perpendicu- 
lar height, as Plutarch relates. It extends from east to west, 
and the top of it extended a great length all of a height; yet 
some part of the Alps is much higher, clouds are seen some- 
times upon it, neither is it always covered with snow, as the an^ 
cients reported. 

(.n) Delphian, of Delphi, from Jldelphoi, Gr. i. e. brothers; 
because Apollo and Bacchus, both sons of Jupiter, were wor- 
shipped there. Or from Delphos, the founder of it. It was 
very ancient, and flourished 100 years before the Trojan war; 
the first, most magnificent and richest of all the oracles of Apol- 
lo, and of all the other gods. An ancient city in Beeotia, at the 
foot of Parnassus, built upon a steep rock, without any other 
walls; now Delpho. There was a magnificent and famous tem- 
ple and oracle of Apollo, whither all nations resorted for an- 
swers in all dubious affairs; and enriched with the most valua- 
ble gifts; therefore he was called Apollo Delphius. It had its 
original from a ilock of goats, that resorted there, and from an 
enthusiastical girl. In it was kept a perpetual fire: which cus- 
tom they borrowed from Moses. 

(o) Dodona: Lat. from the Gr. i. e. sounding day and night: 
or because it was built by Dodon the son of J a van, and grand- 
son of Japhet, the captain of a colony, which first inhabited that 
part of Epirus, Gen. 10. 4. A famous and ancient town in Cha- 
onia, on the we$t side of Epirus; famous for the vocal forest 
and oracle of Jupiter, where the oaks consecrated to him, gave 
answers; from thence he was called Dodoneus. Hesiod says, 
it was the most ancient of all the oracles of Greece. 

(p) The Adriatic sea, now, the gulf of Venice or Illyria; 
which separates Greece and Illyricum from Italy. Saturn pass- 



chap. in. PARADISE LOST. £3 



CHAPTER III. 

Satan, though sensible of the diminution of his glory , directs his 
speech to the fallen angels, and comforts them with hope yet 
of regaining heaven. Then tells them of a new world, and a 
new kind of creature to be created, according to an ancient 
prophecy, or report in heaven; and threatens the Deity: which 
the rebellious angels all assent to. 

All these and many more appeared in multi- 
tudes, but with downcast eyes, and full of shame; yet 
not so but that there appeared such looks, wherein 
some glimpse of joy faintly was seen; to have found 
their chief captain not in despair, and to have found 
themselves not utterly annihilated; which was alike 
evident from his doubtful countenance: but Satan soon 
recollecting his usual pride, with lofty words, which 
had a resemblance of worth but not the reality, gently 
raised their fainting courage, and for a little time put off 
their fears. Then immediately he commanded, that at 
the warlike sound of loud trumpets, and of clarions, his 
mighty standard should be set up: Azazel, (q) a pow- 
erful cherub, claimed that proud honour as his right; 
who forthwith from the glittering staff spread out the 
imperial ensign; which lifted up high, shone like a 

ed over it when he fled into Italy: where he propagated the 
Phoenician and Grseeian idolatry, arts and sciences; for which 
he was entertained by Janus the king of it, and deified after his 
death. These institutions made men so happy, that the poets 
called that time, the golden age. Saturn is Adam; and that 
age, the state of innocence, before his fall. 

(;;) Azazel, or Gnazazel; Heb. i. e. a goat going away, or 
sent aivay. The scape goat, which bore all the sins of the peo- 
ple into the wilderness, and died there, Levit. xvi. 7. A type 
of Christ. But others take it for a devil, therefore Milton 
very properly makes him to be Satan's standard-bearer in chief. 



04 PARADISE LOST. boor i. 

comet streaming to and fro in the wind, adorned with 
rich workmanship and golden lustre, being seraphic 
trophies and arms; meantime the warlike music of Sa- 
tan, was blowing with such sounds as stir up to battle; 
at which the whole army sent up a shout that shook hell, 
and pierced farther to the great space. In a moment 
ten thousand banners were seen to rise through the 
gloom into the air, waving with colours such as are seen 
in the sun at his rising; and with them were lifted up 
a vast number of spears, and helmets, and shields, 
joined together in order of battle, of extreme great 
depth. Soon after they begin to move in exact order, 
not unlike the Greeks to the sound of flutes and pipes, 
such as raised the spirits of the heroes (r) of old to no- 
blest heights, and breathed deliberate, firm, and un- 
moved valour, instead of rage, with less dread of death, 
than of flight, or cowardice: nor did such music want 
power to mitigate and assuage, with solemn and grave 
sounds, troubled thoughts; and to drive away anguish, 
doubts, fears, pain, or sorrow, from the minds of mortals 
or immortals. 

Thus they, united with all their force, and fixed in 
thought, marched on in silence, to soft pipes, that in 
some measure eased their painful steps over the burnt 
soil: and now they stand advanced in sight, a terrible 
front, dreadful in length, and in dazzling armour, after 
the manner of old warriors, with spear and shield, wait- 
ing what commands their mighty chief had to give out; 
he casts his experienced eye through the armed files, 
ami cross the whole battalion, by which means he ob- 
served their due order, their countenances, and statures, 
shewing them like gods; at last he numbers them. 

(r) Heroes; Lat. Gr. i. e. great and illustrious men, renown- 
ed for their valour, wisdom or virtuous deeds; for which they 
were deified and highly celebrated after death: as Jason. 
Achilles, Hercules, c^c. 



chap. in. PARADISE LOST. Q5 

And now his heart swells with pride, and valuing 
himself upon his strength, he glories; for never sine© 
did ever any created man meet sueh force, not in the 
most numerous and powerful armies, which if named 
with these, could only deserve to be compared to a 
small people in India, known to us by the name of pig- 
mies; though all the brood of giants that are said to 
have made war against the gods, were joined with the 
race of heroes, who fought at Thebes (s) and Troy, (t ) 
with auxiliary deities mixed on each side; and what 
makes a great noise in fable or romance, of king Ar- 
thur (n) attended by British (x) knights, and all those 

(s) Thebes, Lat. Gr. from the Phcen. i. e. dirt or mud; be- 
cause it was covered with water, snow and dirt in the winter 
time. A famous city of Bceotia in Greece, built by Cadmus, or 
at least the citadel of it, which was called Cadmsea, from him. 
There Cadmus with his heroes fought: there also Estocles and 
Polynices, sons of Oedipus, fought one against another; and 
there Hercules the giant was born who slew the Centaurs, the 
Nemsean lion, the monster Hydra, and the wild boar of Ery- 
manthus, near Thebes, Sfc. 

(t) Troy, Ilium, Ilion and Ilios; Lat. from the Gr. from 
Ilus the fourth king of Troy, who enlarged it, and gave it that 
name. It is called also Troy, from Tros, the second king; 
founded by Erycthonius, about A.M. 2574. The city of Troy 
in Phrygia, in the Lesser Asia, three miles from the iEgean 
sea, upon the river Xanthus, near mount Ida. What heroes 
fought there on both sides, while the Greeks besieged it tea 
years, and then razed it, 432 years before the building of Rome, 
is well known to all, who have read Homer, Virgil, Ovid and 
other poets. 

(u) King Arthur, Brit. i. e. a strong man, king Arthur was 
crowned Ji.D. 516 and was a famous hero in old British histo- 
ry. They say he fought 12 battles with the Saxons, with vast 
valour and success. He combated also with many foreign 
knights and champions, died in the 90th year of his age, and 
34th year of his reign. 

(pc) British of Britain, Heb. and Phcen. i. e. the land of tin: 
or Brit. i. e. painted, because the old Phoenicians dug tin out 






56 PARADISE LOST. book u 

who since that, either Christian or infidel, have distin- 
guished themselves at jousts (y) and tournaments, in 
Aspramont, {%) or Montalban, (a) Damascus, (b) or Mo- 
rocco, (c) or Trebisond; (d) or those who were sent from 

of Cornwall, Sfc. and the old Britons painted themselves with 
wood, Sfc. to make themselves appear more terrible in war as 
the Piets in Scotland, and the wild Americans do to this day. 

(y) Jousts, which was a very ancient diversion, when the 
combatants mounted on horseback, armed, adorned with fea- 
thers and lances in their hands, run at one another a full gal- 
lop, one on one side, and the other on the other side of a low 
rail. This sort of exercise (called jousts and tournaments in 
the old French) was first introduced into Germany, at Magde- 
burg, Jl.D, 835, by Henry called the Fowler, a Saxon prince, 
who was elected emperor of Germany, some time after Charles 
the Great, by Manuel Comnenus, emperor of Constantinople, 
about Jl.D. 1114. by K. Henry IV. in Smithfield, before the 
English nobility, Jl.D. 1409. But was used among the old Sax- 
ons, as a trial of manhood and innocence; and called by them 
kamp-Jlght, now by us a duel and combat. Lat. Fr. i. e. a fight 
between two men. 

(x) Aspramont; Lat. i. e. a rough, rocky mountain; a feign- 
ed name in old romances. 

(a) Montalban; Lat. i. e. a white mountain. A mountain 
distant 12 miles from Rome in Italy; whereon the decisive 
combat was fought between the three Horatii on the side of the 
Romans, and the three Curiatii, on that of the Albans. Some 
take it also for Montaubain, in France, and others, for a feign- 
ed name in romances. 

{b) Damascus; for therein it is said that Cain and Abel the 
first heroes fought for life and death, Gen. iv. 8. 

(c) Morocco; Heb. i. e. west, or Arab. i. e. a government, 
Gr. i. e. black; because it is west from Canaan, and the people 
are black. The Romans called it Mauritania, i. e. the country 
of the Mauri, whom we call Moors and blacks. A large, plea- 
sant and fruitful kingdom in Africa, upon the Atlantic ocean. 

(d) Trebisond, or Trabisond; by the Greeks, Trapeza, i. e. 
a four-footed stool, because it resembles that. The capital city 
of Cappadocia, and the seat of a Turkish governor, near the 
Euxine sea. This country is said to have been the land of the 



chap. hi. PARADISE LOST; jjj 

the shores of Afric, (e) when the powers of (/) Charle- 
main, fell by Fontarabia. (g) * Thus far were these be- 
yond the comparison of any mortal valour, yet they ob- 
it is 300 miles long, and 180 miles broad; and is divided into 
seven provinces. Morocco is very large, and was the capital 
city of it; but now Fez enjoys the honour. This country con- 
tains many Roman antiquities still. Here king Juba acted the 
hero with Pompey, Curio, Scipio, Ceesar, Sfc. 

Amazons, afterward the seat of the Parthian empire. Alexis 
Comnennus founded this empire, when the Turks took Constan- 
tinople from him. A. D. 1204. Muhammed the Great took it 
from the Greeks, A. D. 1461. so it has continued in their pos- 
session. The Greeks now call it Romania, through a mistake. 

(e) Afric, for African, from Africa, Arab. i. e. an ear of corn , 
because it is very fruitful in corn in the valleys; or from Ifriski 
or Ifriskish an Arabian prince. The Tartars and Indians call it 
Magrib and Al-Grib, i. e^ the west, on account of its situation 
in respect to them. Its ancient names were Olympia, Oceana, 
Eschatia, Coryphe, Hesperia, iEria, Ortygia, Ammonia, Ethi- 
opia, Ophiusa, Cephenia, Cyrene, Lybia. Africa is the largest 
peninsula in this part of the world, encompassed with the sea, 
except the isthmus of Suez, which is 18 leagues or 64 miles 
long. It is one of the four grand parts of the earth, larger than 
Europe, much less than Asia, extending from N. to S. about 
4800 miles, and from E. to W. 4800 miles. It lies almost under 
the torrid zone, is excessively hot, barren and sandy, very im- 
perfectly known to the ancients, who thought it was not habi- 
table, and even to us this day, in the inland regions. It was 
peopled by the posterity of Ham, who bear his curse to this day, 
for they have been always slaves to other nations, Gen. ix. 26. 
Christianity flourished there in the first ages, Tertullian, St. 
Augustin, St. Cyprian, were glorious lights therein; but alas! 
now they are almost all Heathens and Muhammedans. Chris- 
tianity was weakened by the invasion of the Goths and Sara- 
cens, and lastly of the Muhammedans, A.D. 722. 

(f) Charhnudn; Fi\ i. e. Charles the Great. In the Teut* 
and Sax. it signifies strong, stout, valiant. A mighty hero, a 
valiant and pious prince, born A.D. 742. He was king of Franee, 

(g) Fontarabia; Span, from the Lat. i. e. a rapid stream. A 
very strong fort and city on the frontiers of Spain in Biscay, on 

S 



58 



PARADISE LOST. 



BaoK I. 



served tlieir dread commander; he, in shape and gesture 
proudly eminent, stood like a toAver; for his form had not 
lost all her first brightness, nor did he appear less than 
an archangel ruined, and a great excess of glory ob- 
scured: as when the sun newly risen looks through the 
misty air which hinders his beams from piercing through; 
or when from behind the moon in dim eclipse, he sheds 
a bad influence on half the nations, and perplexes mon- 
archs with fear of change; so darkened was the archan- 
gel, yet he shone above them all, but deep scars of thun- 
der had marked his face, and care was visible on his 
faded cheeks, but under brows of dauntless courage and 
considerate pride, that watched for revenge. His eye 
was cruel, but cast signs of remorse and compassion, to 
behold his companions, or rather those who had follow- 
ed him in his crime (whom he had beheld far otherwise 

and made emperor of Germany, A.B. 800. Crowned at Rome 
Ity Pope Leo III. with the title of Ceesar Augustus and the two- 
lieadecl eagle, to make the Roman and German empire, which 
he possessed in great part. A victorious, learned, liberal, just 
and pious prince; therefore he was dignified with the title of 
most Christian king, which the French kings have enjoyed 
ever since. He died peaceably at Aix la Chapelle, Jan. 2S« 
A.D. 814, of his age 72, reign 45, and was buried there. Fre- 
derick I. took his body out of the sepulchre, out of which were 
taken a great number of reliques and rarities, which he had 
collected in his life-time; but not like the riches found in king 
David's. 

the mouth of the river Ridossa, near St. Sebastian, and well 
fortified on the borders of France, which hath frequently be- 
sieged it, but in vain. \ Obs. This expedition and fall of 
Charles the Great, with his nobles at Fontarabia, related by 
Mr. John Turpin, is entirely false and fabulous. But poets do 
not regard exactness of history nor chronology, provided a fic- 
tion may help them out, and please their readers. For iEneas 
was 3.00 years after queen Dido, though Virgil makes them 
contemporary, as St. Austin proves in his book of the city of 
God, and G. Hornius in his Area Nose p. 358. 



chap. in. PARADISE LOST. 59 

once in bliss) condemned now to have their lot in pain 
for ever; millions of spirits for his fault deprived of hea- 
ven, and for his apostacy flung from eternal splendors; 
yet how faithful they stood, though their glory was with- 
ered! As when lightning hath scorched the oaks, though 
their tops be singed and bare, their stately trunks still 
stand upon the blasted heath. Satan now prepares to 
speak, whereon they bend their doubled ranks from 
wing to wing, and so half enclose him about with all 
his peers. They all kept mute, through attention; and 
thrice lie attempted to speak, and as many times, in 
spite of all his scorn, tears, such as angels may be said 
to weep, burst forth ; but at last, mixing his words 
with a great many sighs, he said: 

Ye numbers of immortal spirits! powers, matchless 
except with the Almighty! and even that strife was not 
inglorious, though the event was fatal, as this place tes- 
tifies, and this sad change, hateful to utter; but what 
power of mind, foreseeing or foretelling from the depth 
of past or present knowledge, could have feared how 
such united force of so many gods, and such as stood 
like these, could ever be defeated? For who can yet be- 
lieve, though after some loss, that all these powerful 
legions, whose expulsion hath almost emptied heaven, 
shall fail to ascend up thither again, by the power of 
their own strength, and again take possession of their 
native seat? Bear witness against me, all the host of 
heaven, if different counsels, or any danger shunned 
by me, have lost our hopes: but he who reigns now the 
monarch in heaven, until then sat on his throne, as one 
secure, upheld by old repute, by custom, or consent, 
and his royalty and state put forth at full; but always 
concealed his strength, which encouraged us in our at- 
tempt, and occasioned our fall. Henceforward we 
know his might and our own, so as neither to provoke 
him to new war; or very much to fear war, being pr@- 



60 PARADISE LOST. book i. 

voked. Our better part remains, we are still able by 
close design, by fraud, or guile, to bring to pass what 
we could not effect by force; so that he at length may 
come to learn from us, that he who overcomes by force, 
has overcome but half his foe. Time may produce new 
worlds, of which there went a common report in hea- 
ven, that before it was long he intended to create one, 
and therein fix a generation, whom his choice regard 
should favour equal with the angels in heaven: thither, 
if it be but to pry, shall perhaps be our first sally; 
thither, or elsewhere, for this infernal pit shall never 
hold celestial spirits in slavery, nor the abyss cover us 
long under darkness: but a full council, and a good 
deliberation among us, must bring these thoughts to 
perfection: peace is despaired of, for who can think of 
submitting? War then, either proclaimed or designed, 
must be resolved on. 

Satan finished his speech, and in approbation of his 
words were drawn millions of flaming swords, from 
the thighs of mighty cherubim. The sudden blaze 
made a light in hell: they raged highly against the 
Highest, and grasping their sounding shields fiercely 
in their arms, beat an alarm for war, hurling them with 
defiance towards heaven. 



CHAPTER IV. 

The associates of Satan build Pandemonium, and the infernal 
peers sit there in council. 

Not far off there was a mountain, from whose top 
rolling smoke and fire proceeded; the other parts of it 
firm, and the surface of it shone with a bright gloss; 
(an undoubted sign that in it was contained mineral 



chap. iv. PARADISE LOST. 6i 

ore, ripened by sulphur) thither, with speed, repaired 
a multitude of the devils; just as bands of pioneers (h) 
march before a royal camp, armed with spades and pick- 
axes, to trench afield or cast a rampart. Mammon (i) 
led them on; he was the vilest and darkest spirit that 
fell from heaven, for even in heaven his looks and 
thoughts were always inclined downward, admiring 
more the riches of heaven's pavement, (k) which was 
pure gold, than any thing spiritual, or belonging to 
(rod, or to be enjoyed in beatific vision: first taught by 
his suggestion, Man also examined, and with wicked 
hands rifled the bowels of the earth, to find out gold 
and other riches, which had better have lain there still. 
The crew of Mammon had soon opened into the moun- 
tain a large passage, and digged out gold: (let nobody 
admire that riches grew in hell, since that soil may best 

(Ji) Pioneers or Pioniers; Fr. a milit. T. labourers going be- 
fore an army, to dig up trenches, to level ways, undermine cas- 
tles, &c. 

(i) Mammon; Phoen. Carthag. from the Heb. i. e. riches. 
The god of plenty and wealth among the Phoenicians, Hebrews, 
Sfc. The Pluto of the Greeks and Romans. He is beautifully 
painted here, and his name is repeated, to add the greater force 
to the sense. 

(k) Pavement; Ital. Sp. Lat. i. e. beaten or trod on; a paved 
floor, a causeway, a ground-room in a house. Here, the floor 
of heaven, represented by St. John to be paved with pure gold, 
which Mammon liked best. See Revel. And the building of 
the wall of it was of jasper; and the city was pure gold, like 
unto clear glass. And the foundations of the wall of the city 
were garnished with all manner of precious stones. The first 
foundation was jasper, the second a saphire, the third a chal- 
cedony, the fourth an emerald. The fifth sardonyx, the sixth 
sardius, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth a to- 
paz, the tenth a chrysoprasus, the eleventh a jacinth, the 
twelfth an amethyst. And the twelve gates were twelve pearls; 
every several gate was of one pearl; and the street of the city 
was pure gold, as it were transparent glass. 



, 






6£ PARADISE LOST, book i. 

suit with the root of all evil) and here let those who 
boast in mortal things, and talk with wonder about 
Babel (I) Babylon, and the pyramids of Egypt, (?n) 
learn how their greatest pieces of architecture, built 
for fame with strength and art, are easily outdone by 
reprobate spirits; who can perform in one hour, what 
they in an age, with continual labour and innumerable 
hands, scarcely can. 
/^ A second multitude, not far off on the plain, in many 
pits, that underneath them had streams of melted fire 
issuing from the lake, with wonderful art produced the 
massy ore, separating each kind, and scumming the 
dross. A tliird party, at the same time, formed within 
the ground various moulds, and by a strange convey- 
ance from the boiling pits, filled every hollow place; 
as in an organ (n) from one blast of wind, the sound- 
board breathes to a great many rows of pikes. Pre- 
sently a very large and mighty building rose out of the 
earth, like an exhalation, at the sound of pleasant sym- 
phonies and sweet voices: it was built like a temple, 

(I) Babel; Heb. i. e. confusion; because God there confound- 
ed the language of those impious builders of that tower, Gen. 
xi. 1. 10. From thence comes babble, i. e. to speak nonsense, 
or words that are not understood by other men. 

(m) The walls of Babylon, and the pyramids of Egypt near 
Memphis, which are two of the seven wonders of the world; 
lasting and mighty monuments of human art and power; but in 
nothing comparable to those of the fallen angels, as it appears 
from their infernal hall in hell. 

(n) Organ; Lat. from the Gr. i. e. the instrument. A music. 
T. a musical instrument; so called, because it is esteemed the 
chiefest and principal of all musical instruments: in Heb. the 
name of it signifies lovely and delightful. It was one of the 
first in the world, invented by Tubal, Gen. iv. 21. and very 
much used by the ancients, Job xxi. 12. Psalm el. 4. 



«hap. iv. PARADISE LOST. §3 

where pilasters (o) were set round, and Doric (p) pil- 
lars overlaid with golden architrave: (q) the roof was 
fretted (r) gold, nor was there any want of cornice, (s) 
or freeze, (t) engraved with bossy (u) ornaments: Ba- 
bylon (x) nor Grand Cairo (y) never equalled in all 

(o) Pilasters; Fr. Ital. from the Lat. i. e. little pillars. A 
term of archit. A kind of square pillar made to jut out of 
the wall of any curious fabric. 

(p) Boric; Fr. Lat. Gr. i. e. of or belonging to the Dores. 
A term of archit. It is one of the five orders of architecture, 
from Dorus king of the Dorians in Achaia, who built a mag- 
nificent temple to Juno at Argi, which was the first model of 
this order. 

(</) Architrave; Fr. Gr. i. e. the chief head of a pillar. A 
term of archit. It is a moulding next above the chapiter or head 
of a column or pillar. 

(r) Fretted; Ital. Fr. from the Lat. a term of archit. An or- 
nament of two lists interwoven and at an equal distance, with 
several breaks and indentures, i. e. all this workmanship was 
of pure solid gold. 

(s) Cornice or Cornish; Fr. Lat. from the Gr. a horn. A 
term of archit. It is the third or highest part of the freeze, ex- 
tending out like a horn or point in building. 

(t) Freeze or frieze; Fr. i. e. a ruff or fringe. A term of 
archit. It is the round and broad band of a pillar, between the 
architrave and the cornice. 

(u) Bossy; Fr. belonging to a boss, i. e. a knob or stub swel- 
ling out. Another term of architecture. 

(x) Babylon; Heb. from Babel, i. e. confusion. A very no^ 
ble ancient city in Chaldea, upon a vast plain, built near the 
old tower upon the Euphrates: it was founded by Nimrod be- 
fore the separation and confusion of languages, Gen. x. 10. 
therefore that country is called the land of Nimrod, Micah v. 
6. but was augmented, beautified, and fortified by Ninus, Se- 
miramis, Nebuchadnezzar, Sfc. and that is the reason why se- 

(*/) Grand Cairo, Mcairo, or Mcahera; Arab. i. e. victorious 
or triumphant; beeause Muazzus founded it in the ascendant of 
Mars, who conquers the world. Others from M, the, and Ker, 
city, i. e. the city by way of eminence. The French call it 
Grand Cairo, i. e. the great city. It is the chief city of Egypt 



fr*. PARADISE LOST. book h 

their glory such magnificence, though to enshrine Be- 
lus (z) or Serapis, (a) which were their gods; or whe- 
ther it were seats for their kings, when Egypt strove 
with Assyria (b) in wealth, superfluity, and luxury. 

veral historians ascribe the foundation of it to different princes. 
It was the metropolis of Assyria, until Seleucia eclipsed the 
glory of it, and the first seat of monarchy in the world. The 
walls of it were 60 miles in circuit, 50 cubits high, and 87 feet 
thick, so that several coaches might pass upon them, and es- 
teemed one of the seven wonders of the world. This was the 
oldest, largest, most magnificent, and famous city upon earth, 
until it was ruined by Cyrus, Darius, Seleucus, Orodes, and 
Alexander the Great; he took it, found immense treasures 
therein, stayed a whole year, and died there. It is above 40 
miles south-east from Bagdat, which is upon the Tygris, and 
is often mistaken for the old Babylon; and about 680 miles 
from Jerusalem eastward. It hath been ruinous heaps, and 
dens of wild savage beasts, serpents, and other venomous crea- 
tures, for many ages past, so that travellers dare not approach 
it, as Jeremiah and other prophets foretold; because of the ido- 
latry, cruelty, oppression, pride, and other heinous crimes of 
its inhabitants. 

now, built out of the ruins of the old Memphis, on the east side 
of the Nile, but Memphis stood on the west side and a little be- 
low it, above the first division of that river. Old Cairo was 
upon the bank of the river, but new Cairo is about three miles 
from it. 

(z) Belus; Heb. i. e. lord. The son of Nimrod, the second 
king of Babylon, and the first man that was deified after death* 
He began to reign Jl.M. 1879, and died A.M. 1914. 

{a) Serapls; Heb. i. e. a prince or ox. The same as Apis* 
in the old Egyptian language, from Ab, Heb. i. e. & father: For 
Joseph said, I am a father to Pharaoh, Gen. xlv. 8. An ancient 
king and god of Egypt, thought to be Joseph in fable; being 
represented with the figure of an ox, with the sun and moon, 
and as a youth with a bushel and a cup. All this agrees ex- 
actly to the character and station of that worthy deliverer of 
their nation, and provident statesman. Herodot. lib. 3. c. 28. 
Biodor. Sieul. 2. 

(b) Assyria; Heb. i. e. blessed, from Assur the son of Sem, 
Gen. x. 11, 12, A large and fertile country in Asia, joining to 



ohap. iv. PARADISE LOST. 65 

The infernal palace which the devils had built, was of 
a pompous height, and presently the doors opening 
their brazen folds, discovered within many rows of 
shining lamps and blazing lights, fed with Naphtha (c) 
and Asphaltus, (cl) which from the arched roof hung 
over the smooth pavement; they were hung by subtle 
magic, and sent forth a light as from a sky. The hasty 
multitude entered admiring; some praised the work, 
and some the architect; his art was known in heaven, 
by many a high tower, where dignified spirits held 
their residence, and sat as princes; whom God had ex- 
alted to such power, and given to rule the bright or- 
ders, each in his sacred hierarchy, (e) Nor was he 

Chaldea, Mesopotamia, Armenia, <J"c. where the first grand 
monarchy was founded 115 years after the flood, and continued 
for 1300 or 1400 years. Then it fell into the hands of the Ba- 
bylonians, Ninevites, Medes, Persians, Greeks, Romans, and 
now of the Turks successively. 

(c) Naphtha or Napiha; Lat. Gr. from the Chald. i. e. drop- 
ping* a kind of fat, chalky, and bituminous clay, of a dark co- 
lour, that takes fire sooner than brimstone: it will draw fire to 
it from afar, and is not soon quenched. Famous springs of it 
are at Baku in Persia; they use it instead of lamp-oil, and in 
their fire works. It yields a great revenue to the emperor of 
Persia. 

(d) Asphaltus; Lat. Gr. i. e. unextinguishable. A kind of 
fat burning clay, like pitch, found in pits, and abounding near 
Sodom and Babylon. It was used instead of mortar, in build- 
ing the tower and walls of Babylon, Gen. xi. 3. From thence 
the lake of Sodom is called Asphaltites. 

(e) Hierarchy; Fr. Lat. from the Gr. i. e. a sacred govern- 
ment. A theolog. term. Here, the most glorious government 
of the holy angels in heaven. It consists, as some say, of nine 
orders, which are divided into the highest, middle, and lowest, 
viz. 1. Seraphims, cherubims, and thrones. 2. Dominions, 
principalities, and powers. 3. Virtues, angels, and archangels. 
The holy scriptures, especially St. Paul, Coloss. i. 16. mention 
those degrees of holy angels: but Dionysius the Areopagite, 
and the schoolmen explain and rank them as distinctly as if 



m PARADISE LOST. book i. 

without a name or adoration in ancient Greece; (/) 
and in Italy men called him Mulciber, (g) and feigned 
how lie fell from heaven, thrown down by angry Jove, 
quite over the bounds of heaven; that he fell from morn- 
ing to noon, and from noon to evening, a whole summers 
day, and as the sun set dropt directly down like a fall- 
ing star (h) upon Lemnos. (i) Thus they erroneously 

they had been in heaven and seen them. And doubtless there 
is as much variety in the angels, as there is among men, ani- 
mals, plants, and flowers, whereof there are not two of a kind, 
in every respeet alike; which is a lively demonstration of the 
infinite wisdom and power of the Maker. 

(/) Greece, Lat. from the Gr. from Grcecus, son of Cecrops, 
who was one of the first kings of it. An ancient and noble 
country in Europe, upon the Mediterranean and iEgean seas 
and highly celebrated in history. 

(g) Mulciber; Lat. i. e. A melter or softener of iron. Vul- 
can, Jupiter's son and founder, and god of the smiths. Vulcan 
is Tubal-Cain, Gen. iv. 22. His falling from heaven is nothing 
else, than the history of the fallen angels, drest up in a poetical 
fable, which they had by long tradition from Noah, Moses, &c. 
and from thence it spread over all the world. Vulcan was a fa- 
mous master smith of Lemnos. But here, he is taken for some 
grand devil, whom Milton feigns to be the architect, or head 
workman of the infernal palace. 

(Ji) Falling-Star; Sax. Gr. a philosoph. T. It is a fiery 
meteor, gendered in the air, which appears like a sky-rocket, 
and flyeth about; but when the sulphureous spirits of it are con- 
sumed, it falleth, and flashing like a real star; therefore the 
vulgar fancy it to be one, which is really impossible in nature. 

(i) Lemnos; Lat. Gr. i. e. well-fixed and abiding. A large 
island in the Archipelago, six hundred miles round, opposite to 
mount Athos, dedicated to Vulcan; because in his fall, the poets 
say, he pitched there, continued in it, wrought at the trade, and 
made Jupiter's darts. Here he had a temple, and was adored 
as a god. The fire that breaks out of a scorched mountain, 
that burns up the ground, so that no grass nor plant grows up 
to perfection, but whithereth, and makes a hideous noise there- 
about, gave birth to this fable. It is now called Stalimine cor- 
ruptly by the Turks. 



eHAP. iv. PARADISE LOST. 67 

relate it, for he fell long before with these rebellious 
angels; nor was it of any advantage to him now, that 
he had built many towers in heaven, neither did he 
escape by all his engines and contrivances, but was 
sent headlong, with all his associates, to build in hell. 
In the mean time some of the fallen angels, by com- 
mand of Satan, and with the sound of trumpets, with 
majestic formality, proclaim throughout all the host, a 
solemn council to be held at Pandsemonium, (k) the 
high eapital of Satan and his peers. Their summons 
called those, who either by place or choice were the 
worthiest from every band; they came attended with 
hundreds and with thousands; all the entrances were 
crowded, the gates and wide porches, but chiefly the 
spacious hall (though it was for largeness like a field, 
where champions are accustomed to ride in armed, and 
defy their enemy to push with the lance, or to mortal 
combat) for the hall was full, both on the ground and 
in the air, which was crowded with rustling wings: as 
bees in the spring time pour forth their numerous 
young in swarms about the hive, who fly to and fro 
among fresh dews, and among fresh flowers, by the 
sides of their hive, which is new rubbed with baulm, 
and is as the suburb of their straw-built city, where 
they expatiate and confer about their state and labour; 
so thick those miserable angels croAvded about the pa- 
lace, but were straitened for room, till the signal was 
given; when there happened a miracle; for they who but 
a little while since seemed to exceed the bigest giants, 

(k) Fandmmonium; Milt, from the Gr. i. e. Jlll-devils-halL 
The infernal court or palace of all the daemons or devils. { Obs. 
Milton's pregnant imagination, wit, elocution, and learning, in 
the composition and description of this court, hath far outdone 
Ovid in his description of the palace of the sun, and of all other 
ancient poets; so that nothing extant among them comes up to 
this. 



68 PARADISE LOST. book i. 

(Z) now thronged without number, less than the small- 
est dwarfs, (m) and in very little compass; small as 
pigmies, (n) who live beyond the mountains of India; 
or than fairy (o) elves, (jp) whose midnight dancings by 
the side of a fountain or forest, some belated peasant 
sees, or at least dreams so; while the moon shining 
bright, wheels her course nearer to the earth; they 
seeming to him intent on their mirth and dancing, charm 
his ear with pleasant music, and his heart beats at once 
with joy and with fear. Thus these spirits being in- 

(l) Giants; Lat. Gr. i. e. earth-born; because the poets feign- 
ed they were the sons of Titan and the earth, after the deluge, 
who made war with the gods. Men of extraordinary stature. 
That there were such before the flood and since, is evident, from 
Gen. vi. 4. Num. xiii. 33. Dent. iii. 11. from ancient history, 
and from modern experience; for most huge bones of men have 
been found in divers places, Goliath was six cubits and a span, 
1 Sam. xvii. 4. i. e. somewhat above 11 feet English; besides 
many other instances. 

(in) Dwarfs; Sax. Dut. Teut. i. e. crooked, bunched; persons 
of a most low stature, little and small people. Such are the 
Laplanders, and some little men and women in all places. 

(n) Pigmies; Gr. from the Heb. Gamed, i. e. a eubit, or palm 
of the hand; because they did not exceed a cubit or a foot and a 
half at most in height. A little people said to live on the moun- 
tains of India or Africa, who had children at five years of age, 
died about eight, that hid themselves in caves for fear of tfee 
cranes, whicli swallowed them up whole, and had every thing 
in proportion to their stature and length of days. Some think 
they were a sort of apes or chimpanzees, and not human crea- 
tures; others fancy the pigmies dwelt in Lapland, because the 
Laplanders, are all o" a low stature: the Musketoe Indians do 
not exceed four feet at most, and many of them are much short- 
er. See Cockburn's Journey, p. 240. 

(0) Fairy; Sax. O. E. from the Gr. of fairies or little devils, 
which haunt the woods like satyrs; feigned to go about dancing 
in the woods, in great companies in the night time. Devils. 

(p) Elves; from Elf, Sax. 0. E. Hobgoblings, mischievous 
and fantastical spirits, haunting the woods and desolate places, 
of whom old women tell strange fables. 



ghap. iv. PARADISE LOST. 69 

corporeal, reduced their immense shapes to forms that 
were exceeding small, and were at large, though still 
without number, amidst the hall of that infernal court; 
but far within, like themselves, and in their own pro- 
per shapes, sat in privacy and secret counsel the chiefs 
of the seraphim and cherubim, more than a thousand 
demi-gods, (q) upon seats of gold. The counsel was 
complete and full, when after a short silence, and the 
summons being read, the grand consultation began, (r) 

(q) Demi-gods; Sax. Lat. Semones, q. Semi-homines, i. e. 
half men or inferior gods among the Romans, i. e. half gods. 
X Obs. Among the heathens the sun was the supreme God, their 
first and chief worship was paid to him and other heavenly orbs, 
because they were so beneficial to them. But as men degene- 
rated, they deified and adored daemons, or their mightiest kings 
and heroes after death, with an inferior veneration, such as Be- 
lus, Hercules, Saturn, Ceres, &c. These they called demi-gods. 
Here, the chief or captains among the fallen angels, met in this 
infernal council. 

(r) This book contairas more of the Hebrew, Arabic, Phoeni- 
cian, and other oriental languages; more antiquity, history, both 
divine and human, mythology or fables of the poets; more an- 
cient geography, &c. than any of the following books: although 
the whole poem is filled with more learning of every sort, than 
is contained in any one volume extant; in the most sublime, ele- 
gant, well connected and short compass. The characters and 
speeches of the devils are wonderful and astonishing, most pro- 
per and masterly. But his description of the Pandsemoniuni 
transcends all human learning. 



THE SECOND BOOK 



OF 



PARADISE LOST. 



THE ARGUMENT. 

The consultation begun, Satan debates whether another battle 
be to be hazarded for the recovery of heaven: some advise it, 
others dissuade. A third proposal is preferred, mentioned 
before by Satan, to search the truth of that p rophesy or tra- 
dition in heaven, concerning another world, and another kind 
of creature, equal or not much inferior to themselves, about 
this time to be created. Their doubt who shall be sent on 
this difficult search. Satan, their chief, undertakes the voy- 
age alone; is honoured and applauded. The council thus 
ended, the rest betake them several ways, and to several em- 
ployments, as their inclinations lead them, to entertain the 
time until Satan return. He passes on his journey to hell 
gates, finds them shut, and who sat there to guard them; by 
whom at length they are opened, and discover to him the 
great gulf between hell and heaven: with what difficulty he 
passes through, directed by Chaos, the power of that place, 
to the sight of this new world which he sought, 



chap. i. PARADISE LOST, 73 



CHAPTER I. 

The consultation begun, Satan debates concerning another battle.. 
in order to recover heaven: proposes to search the truth of 
that prophesy in heaven, concerning another world and new 
creature. Their doubt who shall be sent on this difficidt search. 
Satan their chief undertakes alone the dijjicidt task; is ho- 
noured and applauded. 

Satan sat high exalted on a throne of royal state, 
which by far outshone the wealth of Ornius, (a) or of 
India, (b) or where the sumptuous east yields to her 

(a) Ormus, Ormuz, or Hormus; from Armuza, a town of 
Carmaniea in Persia near it, Pers. i. e. crafty. It was first 
called Qrgis, then Geru. A rocky island in the moutli of the 
Persian gulf, 12 miles from the nearest shore of Persia, 15 
miles round, producing nothing but some wood and salt, and 
hath not a drop of fresh water in it. It was formerly a king- 
dom, and had a large territory in Kirman. The Portuguese 
took it, A.D. 1501, built a strong city and castle upon it: then 
it became the glory of islands, and one of the richest upon 
earth, from their vast traffic with India, Persia, Arabia, &c. 
But through their avarice and pride, Shah Abbas, king of 
Persia, i. e. king and father, assisted with the English, took it 
from them, with the loss of seven millions of money and much 
blood, April 25, Jl.D. 1Q22. They razed it and transferred all 
the trade of it to Gomron, and four cantons were carried from 
thence to Ispahan; now it is a very poor place. 

(Jb) India; from the great river Indus, called Scind by the 
natives, Tartars, and others, which divides it from Persia on 
the west; or from Hadoran the 5th son of Joktan, who first peo- 
pled it, Gen. x. 27. Therefore in scripture it is called Hodu, 
Havilah, and Chus, i. e. beautiful and worthy of praise; be- 
cause it is an exceeding fine rich country: by the Arabs, Hind; by 
the natives, Persians, <§*c. Hindostan, i. e. the country of the 
blacks, or swarthy people; but by us, the empire of the great 
Mogul, and the East Indies. It is the largest (except China) 
and the richest empire upon earth, about 1680 miles in length, 
and 1690 miles in breadth. It lies between China on the east. 
10 



74 PARADISE LOST. book ir. 

kings rich pearls and gold: be was by merit raised to 
that bad dignity, and from despair thus high lifted up 
beyond hope, aspires higher still, ambitious to carry 
on a vain Avar against God, and not yet enough taught 
by events, in this manner expressed his proud thoughts 
and imaginations. 

Ye powers and other inhabitants of heaven! for such 
you still by right are called, since no deep can hold 
within its gulf immortal vigour, though it may be op- 
pressed and fallen: therefore I give not heaven for 
lost; celestial virtues rising from this descent, will ap- 
pear more glorious and more terrible, than from no 
fall, and have a certainty in themselves to prevent their 
fearing any second. Though my just right, the fixed 
laws of heaven, and next your free choice did first cre- 
ate me your leader, with whatever hath been achieved 
of merit, either in council or in battle; yet this loss (so 
far at least recovered) hath established me much more, 
in a safe and unenvied throne, yielded me with full 
consent. The happier state, which in heaven follows 

and Persia to the west, and upon the Indian ocean, and contains 
37 kingdoms besides innumerable islands. | Obs. India was al- 
ways esteemed the richest part of the world, in gold, silver, 
jewels, spices, Sfc. and we have a signal proof of it, in those 
immense treasures, which Thamas Kouli Kan took from the 
emperor and others, when he invaded that empire, Ji.I). 1740. 
Nadir Shah collected to the value of 87,500,000/. while he con- 
tinued there: he carried away 25,000,000/. He took from his 
officers and soldiers 12,500,000/. from the omras or princes 
3,750,000/. The jewels were worth about 2,000,000/. The 
imperial throne set with diamonds, Sfc. 2,250,000,000/. In con- 
tributions from the people 25,000,000/. Besides vast sums from 
petty kings aud cities, with the lives of 200,000 inhabitants. 
See Mr. Eraser's history of Kouli Kan, who gives a more ex- 
act account of all: but that from Astracan mentioned in the 
public papers, Sept. 23, 1740, surmounts all credibility. East 
India was first discovered to the Europeans by the Portuguese, 
when Vasques de Gania arrived at Calicut, May 4, Ji.D. 1498. 



chap. i. PARADISE LOST. 75 

dignity, might draw envy from those of inferior rank; 
but who will envy here him, who being in the highest 
place, is exposed to stand foremost against the thun- 
der of Grod, and to be to you as a bulwark; condemned 
at the same time to bear the greatest share of misery 
without end? Where then there is no good to strive 
for, there can no strife arise from faction; for none 
sure will claim precedence in hell, nor is there any 
whose share of present pain is so small, that he with 
ambitious mind will covet more? With these advan- 
tages then, thus leagued in firm faith and accord, more 
than there can be in heaven, we now return, to claim 
our ancient and just inheritance; being more sure to 
prosper, than past prosperity could have assured us: 
but which may be the best way to obtain our end, 
whether open war or concealed stratagem, is the sub- 
ject of our present debate; whoever can advise, let him 
speak. 

Here Satan remained silent; and next him Moloch, 
who assumed a name of royalty, stood up; he was the 
strongest and fiercest spirit that fought in heaven, and 
was now grown fiercer through despair; his aim was 
to have been deemed equal in strength with the Al- 
mighty, and rather than be less than that, chose not 
to be at all; but having lost that hope he lost all fear: 
he made no account of God, or hell, or worse, and spoke 
as follows: 

My sentence is altogether for open war; I boast not 
of stratagems, for in them I am not skilful; let those 
contrive them who have no better means to use, and 
when there may be occasion for them, not now: for 
while they sit inventing, shall the rest, so many mil- 
lions that stand in arms and impatiently wait the sig- 
nal to ascend, sit lingering here; heaven's fugitives, 
and accept for their dwelling-place this dark and 
shameful pit, which is the prison of his tyranny, who 
reigns only by our delay? No, let us choose rather, aim- 



76 PARADISE LOST, book n. 

ed with fury and hell ilames, all at once to force resistless 
way over the 'high towers of heaven, turning our tor- 
tures into horrible arms against him who tortures us; 
when he shall hear, to meet the noise of his almighty 
thunder, infernal thunder, and for lightning, see black 
fire and horror shot with as great rage among His an- 
gels; and see His throne itself, mixed with burning 
sulphur and strange fire, torments which he himself in- 
vented. — -But perhaps, the way seems hard and steep, 
to scale upwards upon the wing, against a foe above 
us. — — If the sleepy drench of that lake does not still 
stupify, let such bethink them, that we ascend in our 
proper motion, up to our native seats; descent and 
sinking is contrary to our celestial natures. Who were 
there of late, when our fierce foe pursued us closely 
through the deep, but felt with what compulsion and 
labour we sunk thus low? The ascent then is easy, but 
the event is feared: it is objected, that if we should 
again provoke Him, who is stronger than us, His wrath 
may find some worse way to our destruction; as if those 
who are already in hell could fear to be worse destroy- 
ed. What can be worse than to dwell here, driven 
out from bliss, and condemned in this abhorred prison 
to utter woe; where pain of unquenchable fire must 
torment us, without any hope or end? We are the ob- 
jects of His eternal wrath, whenever His unmerciful 
scourge and the hour of torture calls us to punishment: 
if we were to be more destroyed than this, we should 
be quite annihilated and expire. What do we fear 
then? What doubts do we raise, to inflame his utmost 
rage? which raised to the height, will either consume 
us quite, and reduce these essences of ours to nothing; 
(which is happier far, than to be miserable and have 
eternal being) or if our natures be indeed immortal, and 
we cannot cease to be, then, at worst, we are on this 
side nothing; and we feel by proof, that our power is 



chap. i. PARADISE LOST. fy 

sufficient to disturb His heaven; and with continual as- 
saults to alarm Mis fatal throne, although it may be in- 
accessible; which, if it is not victory, it is nevertheless 
revenge. 

He concluded frowning, and his look threatened 
desperate revenge and dangerous battle, to any who 
were less than gods. On the other side Belial rose 
up, more graceful and humane in his carriage; a fairer 
person did not lose heaven; he seemed composed for 
dignity, and for high exploits; but all was false and 
hollow; though his tongue was eloquent, and could 
make the worse reason appear the better, to perplex 
and confound the wisest counsels: for his thoughts were 
low, industrious to vice, but timorous and slothful to 
nobler deeds; yet he pleased the ear, and with moving 
and persuasive oratory began thus: 

I should, O peers! be very much for open war (as 
not the least behind in hate) if what was the main rea- 
son insisted upon to persuade me to it, did not dissuade 
me from it, and seem to cast an ill-boding conjecture 
upon the success of the whole; when he, who excels 
most in valiant deeds, suspicious of the event, builds 
his courage upon despair, and considers utter dissolution 
as the scope of all his aim, after some fatal revenge. 
First, what revenge? The towers of heaven are always 
filled with armed watch, which takes of the possibility 
of all access: nay, the legions of the holy angels do of- 
ten encamp upon the bordering deep, or with darkened 
wings scout far and wide into the regions of night, and 
scorn all surprize. Or could we by force break our 
way, and all hell should rise at our heels with black- 
est rebellion, to confound heaven's pure light; jet our 
great Enemy would remain unpolluted and incorrupta- 
ble on his throne, and the heavenly substance not sub- 
ject to any blot or stain, would soon expel all mischief, 
and victoriously purge off all our ineffectual fires. Thus 






\ 
78 PARADISE LOST. book ii. 

repulsed; our final hope would indeed be flat despair; 
we should thus exasperate the almighty Conqueror to 
spend all his rage upon us,, and that must end us; that 

at last must be our cure, to be no more. A sad cure! 

for who, though full of pain, would lose this wise and 
understanding nature of ours; these thoughts, that can 
wander through eternity; and rather choose to perish, to 
be swallowed up, and lost in everlasting darkness, with- 
out sense and motion? And supposing this to be a good, 
and to be chose before our present pain, who knows 
whether our angry Foe can give it, or ever will? How 
lie can is quite doubtful, but that he never will is very 
sure. Will he, who is so very wise, at once let loose 
Ms anger; belike through want of power to curb his 
passions, or at unawares, to give his enemies their wish, 
and put an end to them in his anger, whom his anger 

saves only to punish for ever? Wherefore then say 

they who counsel war, why do we cease? We are pre- 
destinated, reserved, and destined to eternal misery; 
let us do what we will, what can we suffer more, what 
can we suffer worse? Is this then worst, thus in arms, 
sitting and consulting? What! when we fled swiftly, 
and the afflicting thunder of heaven pursued and struck 
us, and we besought the deep to shelter us? This hell, 
scorching as it is, then seemed a refuge from those 
wounds. Or when we lay chained upon the burning 
lake? That surely was worse. What if the same breath 
that kindled those fires, again provoked, should blow 
them seven times hotter, and plunge us in the flames;, or 
if from above the God of vengeance, who has abated for 
a little space, should arm again his incensed right hand 
to plague us; what if all heaven were opened, and this 
Ihinameiit of hell should spout out its cataracts (c) of 

(c) Cataracts; Ital. Span. Fr. Lat. from tiie Gr. i. e. falling 
down with force, rushing violently downwards. Water-falls in 
rivers from ftigh rocks, as those of the Danube and Nile, which 



chap. i. PARADISE LOST. 79 

fire? Impending horrors! threatening hideous fall upon 
our heads: while we, perhaps, designing or consulting 
glorious war, shall be caught in a fiery tempest, and 
each of us be transfixed on some rock, the sport and 
prey of continual and racking whirlwinds; to converse 
there with everlasting groans, without any intermission, 
unpitied and unreprieved, and this for ages without 
end? This would be worse, therefore I declare against 
war, either open or concealed: for what can force or 
fraud do against Him? Or who can pretend to deceive 
His mind, who views all things at one view? He from 
high heaven sees and derides all these our vain motions: 
nor is He more almighty to resist us, than he is wise to 
frustrate all our plots and stratagems. But it will be 
said, shall we then live here thus vile, who are the race 
of heaven, thus trampled on, thus expelled to sutler 
chains and these torments? By my advice, better these 
than worse, since inevitable fate subdues us, and an om- 
nipotent decree; which is the will of our conqueror. Our 
strength is equal to suffer, or to act, nor is the law un- 
just that ordains it so; thus, if we were wise, we resolv- 
ed at first, contending against so great an enemy, and 
being so uncertain what might happen. I laugh, when 
those who are bold and adventurous at the spear, 
if that fail them, shrink, and are afraid of what they 
know must follow; that is, to undergo banishment, ig- 
nominy, or bonds, or pain; if the Victor pass such sen- 
tence upon them. Tins is now what we are doomed to! 

makes the inhabitants deaf for three leagues, through the hide- 
ous noise of their fall. Many such are in the great river Tor- 
nea in Lapland, and in most rivers that descend from high rocky 
mountains. But the cataract of Niagara, in North America, is 
the greatest in the world, being heard above thirty miles off; 
for the fall of it is several hundred feet dee}). Mr. Cockburn 
saw one in South America 600 feet high, and heard the noise of 
it two days before they came to it, Journey, p. 224. Here the 
sluices of hell fire let out upon the fallen angels. 






80 PARADISE LOST. book ii. 

which if we can support and sustain, our supreme foe 
may in time abate of his anger; and perhaps now we 
are thus far removed, not mind us, if we offend no more, 
hut be satisfied with what is punished; and then these 
raging fires will slacken, if his breath does not blow up 
their flames: our pure essence will at length overcome 
their noxious vapour, or else being long enured to it, 
at last we shall not feel it; or changed and conformed 
to the place, in temper and in nature, we shall receive 
fierce heat familiar, and without pain: what seems hor- 
rid now will grow mild, and this darkness grow more 
light; besides what hope the never-ending course of 
future time may bring, what chance, what change 
worth waiting for; since our present lot, thinking all 
happiness is but ill, yet though ill, not worst of all, 
except we become our own enemies, and bring more 
misery upon ourselves. 

Thus Belial, in words which appeared to flow from 
reason, counseled dishonourable ease and sloth, not 
true peace; and after him thus spoke Mammon. 

If war be best, we war, either to disenthrone the King 
of heaven, or to recover our own lost right: we may hope 
to unthrone him, then, when everlasting fate shall yield 
to chance, and Chaos judge the strife between him and 
us; to hope the former is vain, and that argues as vain, 
the latter, for what place can there be for us in heaven, 
unless we overpower him, who is the supreme Lord 
there? Suppose he should relent, extend his mercy, 
and publish grace and pardon to us all, upon promise 
made of new subjection; with what eyes could we 
stand humble in his presence, and receive strict and 
severe laws imposed to celebrate his throne with hymns, 
and sing to his Godhead forced hallelujahs? (d) while 

(d) Hallelujahs, from hallelujah, Heb. i. e. praise ye the Lord. 
Son?;s of praise to God; rather an invitation to do so. This 
word is mueh used in the Psalms, and other books of the Old 



chap. i. PARADISE LOST. 81 

lie oar envied Sovereign sits lordly, and Ms altar 
breathes sweet odours and ambrosial flowers,' which 
were our servile offerings: this must be our task in 
heaven, nay, this must be our delight. How weari- 
some would be an eternity so spent, in paying worship 
to one we hate! Let us not then pursue that which to do 
by force is impossible, and if by leave obtained, dis- 
pleasing; for though it were in heaven it would be but 
a state of splendid vassalage: let us seek our own good 
from ourselves, and live to ourselves, though it be in 
this distance from bliss, yet we may be free, and ac- 
countable to none, preferring hard liberty before the 
easy yoke of servile pomp; our greatness will appear 
the most conspicuous, when we can produce great things 
from small, useful from hurtful, and prosperous from 
what is adverse; and in what place soever we are, thrive 
umler evil, and out of pain work ease, through labour 
and patience. Do we dread this deep world of dark- 
ness? How often does God choose to reside amongst 
thick clouds and darkness (which by no means ob- 
scures his glory) and with its majesty covers his throne, 
from whence loud thunders proceed, raging and roar- 
ing so that heaven resembles hell? As he imitates our 
darkness, cannot we too when Ave please imitate his 
light? This desart soil is not without hidden lustre, 
precious stones, and gold; neither do we want skill from 
whence to raise magnificence; and what more is to be 
seen in heaven? In length of time also our torments may 
become our elements, and these piercing fires be as soft 
as they are now sharp and severe; our temper may be 
changed into their temper, which must needs remove the 
sensibility of pain. All things invite to peaceable counsel, 

and New Testament, in the Jewish, Grecian, and other litur- 
gies. It is the incessant exercise of angals of the presence, and 
will be that of all the redeemed for ever and ever in heaven. 
See Rev. xix. 1. the Greeks write it Allelujah. 
11 



. 









$% PARADISE LOST. book ii. 

and the settled state of order, how Ave may best in safety 
Compose our present evils, having regard to what we are, 
and where we are, at the time dismissing all thoughts 

of war. Which is the sum of what I have to advise. 

He had scarcely ended, when a murmur filled the 
assembly, such as when hollow rocks enclose the sound 
of winds, which all night long had blown upon the sea, 
and now lulled to sleep seafaring men, whose bark by 
chance anchors in a rocky bay, after the tempest: such 
an applause was heard when Mammon finished, and 
his sentence that advised peace pleased: for they dread- 
ed such another fight worse than hell; the fear of thun- 
der, and the sword of Michael, (e) had still such pow- 
er over them, and they had no less desire to estab- 
lish the government of hell, which might rise by policy, 
prudence, and along continued course of time, to have 
an emulation, and be set in opposition to heaven; which 
when Beelzebub perceived (than whom none sat high- 
er except Satan) he rose with a composed aspect, and 
in liis rising seemed a pillar of state: deliberation 
Avas marked deep upon his forehead, and princely 
counsel, and care for the public yet shone in his face, 
shewing him majestic, though in ruin: he stood like 
Atlas, (/) fit to bear the weight of mightiest monar- 

(e) Michael , Lat. Gr. from 'the Heb. i. e. who is like God. 
One of the archangels frequently mentioned in holy scripture, 
for his good services to the church; the guardian angel of the 
Jewish, Dan. x. 13. and Christian church, Jud. 9. Rev. xii. 
7. He is supposed here to be chief captain of the celestial 
army, against the fallen angels. \ Obs. The names of the good 
angels are derived from the Hebrew names of God; because 
they are his attendants, they wear his name and livery, L e. ho- 
liness. 

(/) Mtas; Lat. Gr. i. e. a supporter. A mountain of Mau- 
ritania in Africa, so high that the top of it reached the clouds, 
and the poets said, that it supported the heavens. It took the 
name from Atlas, a king of that nation, who was a great as- 
tronomer, contemporary with Moses, and frequently resorted 
thither to view the stars. This gave occasion to the fable. 



«hap. i. PARADISE LOST. 83 

dries, his looks drew audience and commanded atten- 
tion, as still as night, or as the summer's air at noon, 
while he expressed himself thus: 

Thrones! [g) imperial powers! ethereal virtues! (h) 
the offspring of heaven! or must we renounce these titles 
now, and changing our style, be called princes of hell? 
For so the popular voice seems to incline; to continue 
here, and here to build up a growing empire, about 
which we only dream, not knowing that the king of 
heaven hath ordained this place to be our dungeon, 
and not a secure retreat, out of the reach of his power- 
ful arm, to live exempt from heaven's high authority, 
and make new leagues against his throne: but here we 
are to remain in strictest bondage, though thus far re- 
moved from him; under his invincible power, reserved 
his captivated multitude: for be assured, that he in 
height or depth will always reign sole King, and lose 
no part of his kingdom by our revolt; but extend his 
empire over hell, and rule us here with an iron scep- 
tre, as with his golden one he does those in heaven. 
What do we then sit here for, projecting war and peace? 
War hath already determined us, and we are over- 
come with irrecoverable loss; peace has not been of- 
fered us, nor have we sought it: for what peace will 
be given to us, who are already enslaved; what but se- 
vere imprisonment, and stripes, and arbitrary punish- 
ment inflicted on us? And Avhat peace can we return, 
but enmity and hate to the utmost of our power, an un- 
tamed opposition and revenge^ ever plotting (though 

(g) Thrones; Fr. Ital. Span. Teut. Lat. Gr. i. e. to sit. The 
third order of holy angels, such as have royal seats and digni- 
ties above others; they are also called chief princes, Dan. x. 13. 

(h) Virtues; Fr. Lat. The seventh order of the holy angels, 
such as have an excellent valour and might, to execute the de- 
crees and orders of God upon earth; and in the other worlds. 
Here, such chiefs among the devils, who had that royal dignity 
conferred upon them at their creation, but lost it by sin. 






84* PxlRADISE LOST. book ii. 

we may move bat slowly) how the conqueror may reap 
the least benefit of his conquest, and least rejoice in do- 






■ 



ing what we most feel in suffering; nor Avill there want 
opportunities, nor shall we need with hazardous at- 
tempt to invade heaven, whose high walls are out of 
danger of all siege, or assault, or ambuscade (i) from 
hell: what if we should find out some enterprise that 
is easier? There is a place, another world (if ancient 
prophecy and report in heaven be true) the happy ha- 
bitation of some new race, called Man; (k) a being 
much like us, though less in power and excellence, to 
be created about this time, and to be more favoured 
than the angels by him who rules above; so he pro- 
nounced his will among the powers of heaven, and 
confirmed it by an oath, that shook its circumference. 
Let us bend all our thoughts thither, to learn what 
creatures inhabit there, of what make and substance, 
what qualities they are endowed with, what their pow- 
er is, and where their weakness; and whether their ruin 
may be best attempted by force or subtilty. Though 

(t) Ambuscade; Fr, Ital. Sp. from the Gr. i. e. lying about 
the bush or wood. A military term. A body of men hid in a 
wood, ready to rush out upon an enemy unawares. This strata- 
gem in war was first directed by God himself. See Josh. viii. % 

(fc) Man; Teut. Dut. Sax. Man, or Manno, the son of Tuis- 
ton, who was the founder, ancient king, and god of the old 
Germans and Gauls; the same as Noah: for they came from 
Gonier, the eldest son of Japhet, Gen. x. 2. Man denotes that 
creature, which in the Hebrew is called Adam, from his for- 
mation out of the earth; in the Greek, Anthropos, from his 
erect countenance: and in the Latin, Vir, from his great strength, 
and other perfections of the body and mind; being endowed with 
understanding, will, reason, memory, and other spiritual facul- 
ties: the lord of the creation, the king of animals, and supreme 
in the animal world, next in perfection to the holy angels, so 
far as we know, Plato calls man the miracle of God, being (he 
most perfect of the whole inferior creation, an epitome of the 
world, and the image of $od, Gen, i. 2Q V 



chap. i. PARADISE LOST. 85 

heaven is shut, and the great Arbitrator of it sits se- 
cure in his own strength, this place, perhaps, being the 
utmost border of his kingdom, may lie exposed, and 
be left to their defence who hold it: here, possibly, 
some advantageous act may be performed, either by 
sudden onset with hell fire to waste his whole creation, 
or else possess it all as our own, and drive out the 
puny (/) inhabitants, as we are driven; or if not drive 
them out, seduce them to our party, that their God may 
prove their enemy, and with a repenting hand destroy 
his own works: this would be an action surpassing 
common revenge, and interrupt the joy he has in our 
confusion, as well as raise up our joy in his disturb- 
ance; when his favourite creatures hurled headlong to 
partake with us our damnation, shall curse their frail 
original, and faded bliss; faded so soon. Think well, 
if this be worth attempting, or whether it be better to 
sit here in darkness, contriving vain empires. 

Thus Beelzebub spoke his devilish counsel, which 
was first devised, and had been in part proposed by 
Satan; for from whence, but from the author of all evil, 
could spring so deadly a malice; to confound the race 
of mankind in the first root, and mingle and involve 
earth with hell; done all to spite the Great Creator? 
But their spite still serves to advance his honour and 
glory. 

The bold design highly pleased those infernal states, 
and joy shone visible in all their eyes: they voted with 
free assent to what he had proposed; whereupon he 
renewed his speech. 

Synod of gods! well have ye judged, and like to 
what ye are, have resolved great things, and ended 
long debate: this from the lowest deep (in spite of fate) 

(/) Tuny: Fr. Lat. i. e. horn after others: little, mean, in- 
firm, younger. Here man is so called by B?elzebub, in contempt 
and derision, because man was created after the angels. 






86 PARADISE LOST. book u. 

will lift us up once more, nearer our ancient seat, per- 
haps in view of the bright confines of heaven, from 
whence by some advantageous excursion we may chance 
to re-enter heaven; or else in some mild zone, (ra) or 
place of less torment dwell secure, not unvisited by its 
fair light, and at the brightening beams of the east 
purge off this gloom: the soft delightful air shall breathe 
balm, to heal the scorchings of these corrosive fires. — 
But first let us consider whom we shall send in search 
of this new world, whom shall we find sufficient to at- 
tempt, with wandering feet, the dark, infinite, and bot- 
tomless abyss? That can find out his uncouth way, 
through gross and palpable darkness, or take his flight, 
borne upward with indefatigable wings over the path- 
less space, before he arrives at the happy world where 
Man is placed? What strength or art can be enough, 
©r what evasion can ever bear him safe, through the 
strict senteries and thick stations of angels, that doubt- 
less are watching round it? Here he had need of the 
greatest circumspection, and we need no less now in 
the choice of whom Ave are to send; for on him our last 
hope and the weight of all relies. 

Having said thus, he sat down, and looked expect- 
ing who would second him, or undertake this dangerous 
enterprise: but they all sat mute, with deep thoughts 
considering the danger; and each of them, in the coun- 
tenance of others, might have seen how himself looked 
dismayed; all were astonished; none among the choice 
and chiefest of those champions, who had warred in 
heaven could be found so hardy, as to proffer, or con- 
sent alone to undertake, the dreadful journey; until at 

(m) Zone; Lat. Gr. i. e. nbelt or girdle: because it girds the 
world. An astronomical term. Astronomers divide the hea- 
vens into live zones; one is extreme hot, between the two tro- 
pics; two are temperate, between the two tropics and the polar 
circles; and two are extreme cold, between the two polar cir- 
cles and the two poles. 



chap. i. PARADISE LOST. 87 

last Satan, whom now transeendant glory raised above 
his companions, with regal pride, as conscious of high- 
est worth, spoke thus: 

Oh! progeny of heaven! where perhaps ye still have 
thrones, with reason deep silence and demur have seiz- 
ed us, though we are undismaved: the way that leads 
up to light, out of hell, is long and hard; our prison is 
strong; this huge convex of fire, the immense vault of 
hell, outrageous to devour, surrounds us on all sides, 
and gates of burning adamant barred over us, hinder 
all passage out. After these are past (if that be by 
any one possible) the void and bottomless depth of hell 
and night gaping wide, receives him next who makes 
the attempt, and plunged in that abortive gulf, he is 
threatened with utter loss of being. If he escape 
thence, in whatever w orld or unknown region it may 
be, what less remains for him than unknown dangers, 
and perils difficult to go through? But I should very 
ill become this throne, and this imperial sovereignty, 
adorned as I am with splendor and armed with pow- 
er, if any thing could be proposed, judged to be of pub- 
lic moment, that in the shape of difficulty or danger, I 
could be deterred from attempting. Wherefore do I 
assume these royalties? Why do I not refuse to reign, 
if I refuse to accept as great a share of hazard as I do 
of honour? Since to him who reigns they are alike due, 
and so much the more of hazard due to him, as he sits 
high honoured above the rest? Therefore, ye mighty 
powers, the terror of heaven (though fallen) go and 
consult at home (while here shall be our home what 
may best give ease to present misery, and render hell 
more tolerable; if there be cure or charm to respite, de- 
ceive, or mitigate the pain of this ill mansion. Neglect 
no watch against so wakeful a foe, while I far off, 
through all the untrod paths of dark destruction, seek 
a deliverance for us all: none shall partake this enter- 
prise with me. 



88 PARADISE LOST. book it. 

Thus saying, Satan arose, and prudently prevented 
all reply; lest others among the chiefs, their spirits 
raised from his resolution, and certain to be refused, 
might offer now what they before feared; and so might 
stand in opinion his rivals, cheaply winning the high 
reputation, which he had to acquire through extreme 
great hazard. But they did not dread the adventure 
more than his forbidding voice; with him they rose all 
at once, and their rising was as the sound of distant 
thunder: they bend towards him, and bow with awful 
reverence, extolling him as a god, and equal to the 
Highest in heaven: nor did they fail to express their 
praise, that he despised his own, for the general safety: 
(for neither do the damned spirits lose all their virtue; 
lest bad men should boast their specious deeds upon 
earth, to which they are excited only by glory, or close 
ambition varnished over with zeal.) Thus they ended 
their doubtful and dark consultations, greatly rejoicing 
in their general, whom they esteemed matchless: as 
when after a storm, if the sun extends his warm beams, 
the fields revive, the birds renew their songs, and the 
herds bleat, and with their joy make the hills and the 
valleys ring. What shame to Men! devil with devil 
damned holds firm concord; of rational creatures, Men 
only disagree; though they are under hope of heavenly 
grace, and though (rod proclaims peace, jet live in ha- 
tred, strife, and envy, among themselves, levying cruel 
Avars; and wasting the earth, to destroy each other: as 
if (which consideration itself might induce us to unity) 
Man had not hellish foes enough besides, that day and 
night wait for his destruction. 



«hap. n. PARADISE LOST. §9 



CHAPTER II. 

The council thus ended, the rest betake them several ways, and to 
several employments, as their inclinations lead them, till Satan 
returns. 

Thus the infernal council broke up, and the great 
peers of it came forth in order; in the midst came Sa- 
tan their sovereign, and seemed of himself alone strong 
enough to be an opposition to heaven; nothing less 
than hell's dread emperor, with supreme pomp and 
state, imitating God: around him a company of fiery 
seraphim, who enclosed him with shining and dread- 
ful ensigns and arms. Then they ordered the great 
result of their councils to be proclaimed with the sound 
of trumpets: four swift cherubim sounding towards the 
four winds, the meaning of which was explained by 
the voice of a herald, which sounded far and wide, and 
all the host of hell shouted out aloud for joy. 

From thence their minds grew more at ease, and 
being somewhat encouraged by false and ill-grounded 
hope, the ranged bands disperse, and each wanders his 
several way, as inclination or sad choice perplexedly 
leads him, where he may likeliest find some ease to 
his restless thoughts, and pass the painful hours till 
his great chief should return. 

Tart of them on the plain, part hovering in the air, 
others contending in swift race, as in the Olympian (n) 

(11) Olympian, of Olympus. The Olympic games of Greece 
were instituted by Hercules, and celebrated near the city Olym- 
pic! in Peloponnesus, in honour of Jupiter Olympus's father, on 
the second month after the 4th year, every fifth year, or every 
fiftieth year monthly for five days together; because the Dac- 
tyli were five brothers, who settled in Elis, and instituted the 
solemnity. In these the valiant youths exercised themselves, 
12 






gO PARADISE LOST. book ii, 

or Pythian (o) games; others curb fiery steeds, or draw 
up chariots and troops in form of battle: as when, to 
give warning to proud cities, there appears war in the 
troubled sky, and armies rush to battle in the clouds, 
before the van the airy knights spur on and level their 
spears, till thick legions close; and the firmament seems 
to be on lire with warlike apparitions. 

NJ5thers of the fallen spirits, with rage like that of Ty- 
plion, and more fierce, tear up the rocks and hills, and 
ride the air in whirlwinds, so that hell scarce holds the 
wild uproar: as when Hercules, (p) crowned with con- 

tat running, whirlbating, quoiting, jumping, and wrestling; for 
high rewards; but women were not suffered to be at them. 
They were very famous, and more manly (abating the immo- 
desty of the players, who were all naked) than the cruel diversions 
of the Romans, who pleased themselves with tearing men and 
beasts into pieces, upon their theatres; and became their epocha 
or date of time. The Olympiads were the first certain periods 
of chronology among the Greeks. The first Olympiad began 
in the 35th year of Uzziah, king of Judah, on the 14th of our 
June, A.M. 3174 or 3228. After the deluge, 1518 years, 400 
after the destruction of Troy; 30 years before the building of 
Rome; 730 before the incarnation; and continued in use to the 
reign of Constantine; soon after the Christian iEra took place. 

(o) Pythian of Python; Heb. Pethen, i. e. an asp or cocka- 
trice, Gr. i. e. corruption. These games were instituted in ho- 
nour of iVpollo, who shot a huge serpent called Python: (others 
say it was some cruel tyrant whom he slew) because it was ge- 
nerated of the impure mud of the earth after the deluge, by 
the river Cephisus, near Parnassus: therefore he was called 
Pythius, these games Pythici, the city of Delphi (where his 
oracle was kept) Pythia; the priestesses, Pythise or Pytho- 
nissse. They were celebrated every ninth year at first, but af- 
terward on every fifth year, according to the number of the five 
nymphs, that were to congratulate Apollo on his victory over 
the Python; and the conquerors were rewarded with fruits 
consecrated to him. Apollo is the sun, who by his scorching 
rays destroyed this dreadful monster. 

(p) Hercules, the son of Jupiter and Alcmena, and grandson 
ofAlcseus. After many mighty deeds, called his twelve labours. 



chap. ii. PARADISE LOST. 91 

quest from Thessaly, (q) after he had put on the poi- 
soned robe, through pain tore up pines by the roots, 
and threw Lichas (?*) from Oeta (s) into the Black sea. 
Others more mild retreated into a silent valley, and 
sung to harps in angelical notes their own heroic deeds 
and unhappy fall, by chance of war, and complain that 
fate should enslave free virtue: their song was partial, 
but the melody suspended the pains of hell, and gave 
a great delight to the thronging audience; what less 
could be, seeing that they were immortal spirits that 
sung? 

Xln discourse still more sweet (for eloquence charms 
the soul, and song only the sense) others set apart re- 
tired upon a hill, in thoughts more elevated, and they 
reasoned high of Providence, of Fore -knowledge, Will, 

lie ran mad, by putting on a poisoned vest, stained with the 
blood of Nessus the Centaur, whom he had killed with a poi- 
soned arrow, for a foul affront offered to his wife: Nessus in 
revenge pursuaded her to put it upon Hercules, as an antidote 
to the love of other women: when he put it on he ran mad, 
burnt himself to death, and was afterwards deified. 

(</) Thessaly; Lat. Gr. i. e. situated upon the sea; or from 
Thessalus, one of the ancient kings; and Pelasgia, when the 
Pelasgi settled there. A country of Greece, having x\chaia on 
the south, Epirus on the west, and a part of Macedonia; very 
woody and fruitful. The people were given to horsemanship 
and the knowledge of poisonous herbs, which abounded in it. 

(r) Lichas; Lat. Gr. i. e. a man of Lychia; i. e. a stature; 
because it was the country of the giants, men of a large stature. 
He was the servant of Hercules, by whom Dejanira sent him 
that poisoned garment, which made him so outrageous, that he 
threw Lichas headlong into the sea, where he perished. 

(s) Oeta; Lat. from the Gr. r. e. destruction; From Oetus, 
a giant who dwelt on it, and destroyed all before him; a very 
high mountain, dividing Thessaly from Macedonia, whereupon 
Hercules burnt himself to death: hence the poets call him Oe- 
tpeus, and from which he threw Lichas into the sea, though 
many miles distant from it; now Bannia. Near it are the fa- 
mous straits, called Thermopylae, 25 feet broad. i 






%% PARADISE LOST. book ii. 

and Fate; fixed Fate, Free Will, and absolute Fore- 
knowledge; and in these perplexing contemplations 
were lost in wandering mazes, and found no end: then 
they argued much about good and evil, of happiness, 
and of eternal misery, of the passions, of apathy, and 
glory, and shame; all which was vain wisdom, and 
false philosophy; yet with pleasing sorcery it could 
charm pain and sorrow of mind for a time, and raise 
deceitful hope, or arm the hardened heart with stub- 
born patience, as it were with steel. 

Another part bend their flying march four ways in 
squadrons and great bands, upon a bold adventure, to 
make fresh discoveries in that dismal world, if perad- 
venture any part of it might yield them a happier habi- 
tation: their way was along the banks of the four rivers 
of hell, that discharge their deadly streams into the 
burning lake; abhorred Bijx 7 (t) the river of hatred; 
sad Acheron; (it) Cocytus, (x) the river of lamentation; 
and fierce Phlegeton, (y) whose waves boil with raging 
fire. Not far from these runs a slow and silent stream 

(t) Styx; I. Lat. Gr. %. e. hatred and horror. The poets 
feigned four rivers in hell, to whom they gave names from such 
horrible poisonous and deadly springs as were known to them, 
to set forth the dreadfulness of future torments. They say, this 
river ran nine times round hell. 

(u) Acheron, or Jicherus; II. Lat. Gr. i. e. sad, sorrowful, 
and comfortless, Heb. i. e. outmost. A poisonous spring in Pe- 
loponnesus. This fable implies death, the king of terrors. 

(a?) Cocytus; III. Lat. Gr. i. e. lamentation, weeping; for 
it is said to have swelled with the tears of the tormented. Ho- 
mer places it in Cimmeria (which is Scythia, now Tartary) and 
makes hell to be there; because of the blackness, and darkness 
of that country. 

(?/) Phlegeton, or Phlegethon; IV. Lat. Gr. i. e. burning; for 
the waters of it are said to boil for ever. This is the last of 
the rivers of hell, as the poets represented it. 






chap. ii. PARADISE LOST. gg 

in a watery labyrinth, (z) called Lethe, (a) the river of 
oblivion, whereof whoever drinks, forgets all his for- 
mer state and being, both joy and grief, pleasure and 
pain. Beyond this flood lies a frozen continent, dark 
and wild, beat with continual storms of whirlwind and 
hail, which not thawing on the firm land, gathers to a 
heap, and seems like the ruins of some old building, 
all besides being deep snow and ice; a gulph as deep 
as that Serbonian (b) bog, betwixt Damiata (c) and 

(z) Labyrinth; Teut. Dut. Fr. Lat. from the Gr. i. e. not hav- 
ing a door, or receiving and devouring. A building full of 
turnings and windings, so that it was very difficult for one to 
get out of it. A maze. Pliny reckons four of them. The first 
and greatest was built in Egypt by Menis, an ancient king, to 
be a funeral monument for himself, consisting of 12 palaces, 
1390 rooms, and 12 halls. The second in Crete, made by Dse- 
dalus, by the order of Minos, from a model of that, and for the 
same end, or rather for a prison. The third in Lemnos, hav- 
ing 150 pillars of marble: it is under the whole concavity of 
mount Ida, and still to be seen. The fourth in Italy, by the 
order of Porsenna, king of Tuscany. 

(a) Lethe; Lat. Gr. i. e. for get j 'illness. A river of Africa, 
which after a long course hides itself under ground, and appears 
again; wherefore antiquity feigned that all the dead drank a 
draught of its waters before they entered hell, which made them 
forget all their past sorrows. The fable is death, when all the 
pleasures and pains are quite forgotten. 

(6) Serbonian; of Serbon, or Sirbon: Strabo calls it Serbonis; 
Ptolomy and Pliny, Sirbonis. Arab. i. e. the lake; though Stra- 
bo ignorantly takes this for the lake of Sodom. A bog or lake 
upon the utmost borders of Palestine and Egypt, fifty miles 
from Arabia; now Lagos di Teveso, by the Italians, Bayrena 
by the natives, and Barathrum, by the Latins, i. e. a deep gulf. 
It was fifty-two miles in length, one thousand furlongs iu com- 
pass, narrow and very deep, surrounded with hills of loose 
sands, which thickened and discoloured the waters; that pas- 

(c) Damiata, or Bamieia; Heb. i. e. dirt or mud. A town 
in Egypt upon the mouth of the Mediterranean sea, and the 
most easterly bank of the Nile, near old Pelusium, which sig- 









■ 



94 PARADISE LOST. book ii. 



mount Casius, (d) where whole armies have sunk: the 
parching air burns in frost, and cold performs the effect 
of fire: thither at certain revolutions all the damned 
are dragged by their tormentors, and by turns feel the 
bitter change of fierce extremes, which by change are 
made more fierce; their soft ethereal warmth forced 
from beds of raging fire, to starve in ice, there to pine 
immoveable, fixed in and frozen round for periods of 
time, and from thence be hurried back to fire. They 
pass over this river Lethe, both to and fro, to heighten 
their sorrow, and wish and struggle as they pass to 
reach the much desired stream; with one drop of its 
water, to lose in sweet forgetfulness all sorrow and 
pain in one moment, being so near the brink: but fate 
opposes, and spirits of horror, like Medusa, (e) with 



senders did not discern them from the dry sands, and so were 
swallowed up therein and lost. Indeed that large tract of land 
abounds with quicksands, mountains and heaps of sands, where- 
in many travellers have been buried alive, as Cambyses lost 50,000 
men in the sands of Lybia. This lake has been filled up long 
ago, and is not to be found now. 

nifies also dirt; because both are situated in a dirty, clay soil, 
These cities were the key and bulwark of Egypt. Damiata was 
founded by Isis, and destroyed by the Saracens, in the holy war; 
but is now a place of great trade. 

(d) Casius, or Cassius; Syr. i. e. a boundary; because it parts 
Egypt and Palestine: A sandy mountain on the farther side of 
Pelusium, near the Serbonian bog, between the Red sea and the 
Mediterranean sea, extending southward to Arabia Petrsea: at 
the foot of it stood once a town called Casium, famous for the 
temple of Jupiter Casius, wherein stood a statue of him in full 

| proportion, stretching out his right hand with a pomegranate, 

the emblem of his being the terminal god defending the borders 
of that nation. 

(e) Medusa; Lat Gr. i. e. an Imperious queen, the daughter 
of Ceto Phoreas, a king of Corsica and Sardinia; very beautiful, 
having golden hair; of which she was exceeding proud, and con- 
tended with Minerva, for which the goddess turned it into 



chap. ii. PARADISE LOST. 95 

Grorgonian (/) terror guard the ford, and the water of 
itself flies from the taste of all living creatures, as once 
it fell from the lip of Tantalus, (g) Thus the fallen 
spirits roving on in confused march, forlorn and pale, 
with shuddering horror, and with ghastly eyes first 
viewed their lamentable lot, and found no rest: they 
passed along through many a dark and dreary vale, 
and many a dismal region, over many a frozen and 
many a fiery Alp; (h) rocks, caves, lanes, fenns, bogs, 
dens, and shades of death; a universe of death! which 
God created evil by a curse; good only for evil, where 
all life dies, where death lives, and nature breeds per- 
versely all monstrous and prodigious things, abomina- 

snakes; which were so terrible, that they turned all that beheld 
them into stones. Perseus cut off her head, that it might not de- 
stroy the whole country; and as he carried it through Africa, 
the drops of blood became serpents: hence they say, it is in- 
fested with swarms of serpents and other venomous creatures, 
above other parts of the world. 

(/) Gorgonian, of the Gordons; Lat. Gr. i. e. cruelty. The 
Gorgans were so called from Gorgon, a venomous beast in Af- 
rica; they were the three daughters of Pheecus, viz. Medusa, 
Steno, and Euryale: so called from their savageness; because 
they killed at the very sight. 

(g) Tantalus; Gr. Lat. I. e. most miserable. The son of Ju- 
piter and Plota. He killed and dressed up his son Pelops to the 
gods, at a feast: for which they condemned him to hell; where 
he was set in water to the chin, with apples bobbing at his lips; 
yet could taste of neither. 

(/i) Mp for Mps; by a fig. of rhet. Lat. i. e. white: because 
they are always white with snow, or high; a long range of lof- 
ty and steep mountains, which parts Italy and Germany and 
France: it cost Hannibal the Carthaginian general, nine days 
before he got to the top of them; and 15 in marching over them; 
wherein he lost vast numbers both of men and beasts, though 
he mollified the rocks with vinegar, and cut them down with 
iron tools: but Polybius and Livy say, that the Italians, Gauls, 
and others passed and repassed them, long before this famous 
expedition of Hannibal. 



96 PARADISE LOST. book ii, 

ble and beyond all expression; and worse than ever 
fables yet have feigned, or fear conceived, of dire Chi- 
meras, (i) Hydras, (k) and Gorgons. 



CHAPTER III. 

Satan passes on his journey to hell gates; jinds them shut, and 
who sat there to guard them, by whom at length they are open- 
ed, and discover to him the great gulf between hell and 
heaven. 

In the mean while Satan, the adversary of God 
and Man, with thoughts inflamed with highest designs 
put on swift wings, and takes his solitary flight towards 
the gates of hell: sometimes he scours the right-hand 
course, sometimes the left; now flies over the deep with 
steady wings, then soars up, mounting as high as the 
fiery concave: as when a fleet discovered at sea, hangs 
as in the clouds by Equinoctial (in) winds, sailing close 

(i) Chimeras; Lat. Gr. i. e. goats. A Chimera was a fabu- 
lous monster, said to have had the head of a lion, the belly of a 
goat, and the tail of a serpent. It was only a mountain of Ly- 
cia, a bran eli of the M. Taurus in Asia; whose top did cast out. 
flames, and abounded with lions, in the middle there was a good 
pasture for goats ; and at the bottom of it were many serpents. 

(k) Hydras; Lat. Gr. i. e. waters. Hydra is a monstrous and 
excessive water serpent; feigned with 50 heads. It is said that 
I Hercules tamed this monster in the lake Lerna, between Argi 

and Mycene. 

(m) ^Equinoctial, of the JEquinox; Lat. i. e. equal night and 
days. An astron. term here, the trade winds, that blow in Sep- 
tember and March; when the days and nights are of equal 
length. 



eHAP. in. PARADISE LOST. 97 

from Bengal, (-w) or the islands of Ternate, (0) or Ti- 
(lore, (j 1 ) from whence merchants bring their spices, 
they on the trading flood ply to the Cape, (q) through 

(n) Bengal, Indian. The ancient name was Beng, i, e. wa-> 
ter; for as the waters overflow some parts of the eountry, the 
people made their fields into beds of 15 yards square, and two 
yards high; which they called Ala; hence, came Bengala, I. e. an 
overflowed country. A large kingdom in the East Indies, be- 
longing to the Great Mogul, extending upon the gulf of Bengal, 
about 160 leagues in length, and more in breadth. One of the 
most fruitful and pleasant countries of the world, for all sorts 
of commodities; therefore it is called the storehouse of Asia; 
well watered, and abounds in canals; through it the great river 
Ganges runs, and discharges itself into the bay of Bengal. The 
rivers abound with crocodiles, &c. the inlands with elephants, 
&c. The Europeans have a vast trade there. This gulf is 800 
leagues over, through it the Europeans sail to and from India. 

(0) Ternate; Ind. The chief of the five Malocco or Molucco 
islands in the East Indian sea, by which the Europeans sail to 
and from the East Indies, viz. Ternate, Tidore, Machian, Mo- 
ties and Bachian. They lie near the line, and abound with 
spices. The Arabs first began to trade there, then the Muham- 
medans; now they belong to the Hollanders, since they expel- 
led the Portuguese and Spaniards, A.D. 1641. The natives are 
mostly heathen idolaters. 

(p) Tidore, or Tldor; Ind. Another of the Malacca islands, 
near to Ternate, separated only from it by a narrow channel. 

(q) Cape; Fr. from the Lat. i. e. a head, a geogr. term, a high 
mountain or head land running into the sea; here the Cape of 
Good Hope, upon the point of Africa tot he south, whether the 
old Phoenicians and others passed it or no, is uncertain; but it 
was first discovered to the moderns by Bartholomew Dias, a 
Portuguese, A.D. 1454. Vasq. de Gama arrived at Calicut, 
May 20, A.D. 1469. It is called by them Cabo de Bona Spe- 
ranza: because they had good hope of a passage to the East In- 
dies by doubling that cape, as afterwards did appear. The 
Dutch purchased it of their kings, founded a strong fort there; 
A.D. 1651. and held it ever since. Some call it the Cape of 
Tempests; because they are very common thereabouts. 
13 



98 PARADISE LOST. book see 

the Ethiopian (r) sea; just so far off seemed the flying 
fiend. At last the bounds of hell appear, reaching high 
up to the roof, and the gates were three times three- 
fold; three folds were of brass, three of iron, and three 
of adamantine rock; impenetrable, surrounded with cir- 
cling fire, and yet not consumed. 

Before the gates there sat on each side a dreadful 
shape, one of which seemed a women to the waist, and 
fair, but she ended in scaly folds like a serpent, volu- 
minous and vast, armed with a mortal sting; round 
about her middle a cry of hell-hounds barked without 
ceasing, and rung a hideous peal, with loud and wide 
Cerberian (s) mouths; yet when they would, if any 
thing disturbed their noise, crept into her womb, and 
kennelled there, and when not seen, still barked and 
howled within: less abhorred than these were those 
that vexed Scylla, (t) bathing in the sea that parts 

(r) Ethiopian, of Ethiopia, Lat. Gr. i. e. burnt in the face. 
Heb. Chus. i. e. black, from Chus, the son of Sham, who first 
peopled it. Ethiopia is a large hot kingdom of Africa, in the 
Torrid zone, therefore the people are sun-burnt, tawny and 
black; about 3600 miles in length, and 2180 in breadth. It is about 
one half of all Africa. Here, the southern ocean, which wash- 
eth it, and through which the European merchants pass, as 
they s;g to and come from the East Indies, China and Japan, &c* 

(s) Cerberian; belonging to Cerberus; Lat. Gr. i. e. a devour - 
er of flesh, i. e. as wide as those of Cerberus the dog that kept 
the gates of hell, who had three, some say fifty, and Horace 
says 100 heads; signifying his greedy and devouring nature. 
The fable represents time, which devours all things; the three 
heads, time past, present, and to come. 

(f) Scylla; Lat. from the Gr. i. e. vexation and disturbance, 
' Scylla was a frightful rock in the sea between Italy and Sicily? 

so called from Seyllio, a castle on the Italian shore, upon which 
the waves made a noise, like the barking of dogs, which terri- 
fied sailors: or Scylla the daughter of Phorcus, who was poi- 
soned by Circe, and changed from the waist down into strange 
and frightful monsters; wherefore she threw herself into the sea. 



«hap. hi. PARADISE LOST- *)§ 

Calabria (it) from Sicily, (x) nor do uglier follow the 
night-hag, who, when called in secret, comes riding 
through the air, drawn by the smell of infants' blood, 
to dance with Lapland (y) witches, while the labour- 
ing moon is eclipsed by their charms. 

The other shape (if it might be called so, that had 
none distinguishable, in joint, limb, or member, or that 
might be called substance, that seemed shadow, for 
each seemed either) stood as black as night, as fierce 
as ten furies, (z) as terrible as hell, and shook a dread- 

(11) Calabria; Lat. from the Gr. i. e. good and fruitful. A 
very fine fruitful country on the utmost part of Italy, facing 
Sicily, and divided from it by a narrow strait: it is almost an 
island, yields fruit twice in the year, and is about 60 miles wide, 
called now Terre de Laber; i. e. the laud of Calabria, by an 
abbreviation of the old name* 

(.v) Sicily. It was so called from the Sicaui and Sieuli, who 
were the ancient inhabitants. Sicily is the largest and noblest 
isle in the Mediterranean sea, facing Italy; and, as Thueydi- 
des says 20 furlongs from it; therefore it has been a bone of 
contention between the Carthaginians, Greeks, Remans, and 
other adjacent nations, in all ages to this time. 

(y) Lapland; from the ancient Lupiones, or Loppi; L e. silly, 
sottisli, and rude,. The natives call it Lapmark; the Germans, 
Laplandi; the Muscovites, Lappi; for they are an illiterate peo- 
ple, void of all arts and sciences, gross heathens. A cold north- 
ern country in Europe, belonging partly to Sweden, partly to 
Norway, and partly to Muscovy; very barren and barbarous: 
for their dreadful ignorance, superstition and malice, the peo- 
ple are branded with witchcraft and other diaholical practices, 

(z) Furies; Fr. Ital. Sp. Lat. L e« madness and rage; or 
Heb. farar; L e. revenge* The three furies of hell were ima- 
gined to be the tormentors of the damned, and painted with 
snakes about their heads, with eyes sparkling with fire, with 
burning torches in their hands; tormenting the souls of the 
wicked in hell: and their names implied dread and terror. 
Alecto; Gr. i. e. incessant, without rest, never ceasing to tor- 
ment. Megsera, Gr. i. e. envied, hated: Tesiphone, Gr. i. e. a 
revenger of murder, and Ehynides; i. e.. discord and reyenge* 



I 



100 PARADISE LOST. book h. 



ful dart; what seemed his head, had the likeness of a 
kingly crown on it. Satan was now near at hand, and 
the monster moving from his seat, came onward as fast 
with horrid strides, so that hell trembled: Satan un- 
daunted admired what this might be, but without fear; 
for he neither valued nor shunned any thing that Avas 
created, nor feared any thing, God and his son except- 
ed, and thus with a disdainful look began first: 

Thou execrable shape! whence and what art thou? 
that darest, thou grim and terrible, to advance thy mis- 
creant form athwart my way to yonder gates? Be as- 
tsured that 1 mean to pass through them, without ask- 
ins: my leave of thee: give way, or feel the effects of 
thy folly; and learn by proof, hell-born! not to contend 
with spirits of heaven. 

To whom full of wrath, the phantom replied, art 
thou that traitor angel? Art thou he, who first didst 
break peace in heaven, and faith, which until then 
had never been broken, and in proud rebellious arms, 
drew after him a third part of the sons of heaven, co- 
venanted against the Highest; for which both thou and 
they are here condemned, outcast from God, to pass 
eternity in wo and misery? And dost thou reckon thy- 
self with spirits of heaven? hell- doomed! dost thou 
breathe scorn and defiance here, where I reign king? 
(and more to enrage thee, thy king, and lord) back, 
thou fugitive, to thy punishment and add wings to thy 
speed; lest I pursue thy lingering steps with a whip of 
scorpions; (a) or at one stroke of this dart strange 
horror shall seize thee, and such pangs as thou hast 
I never felt before. 

The hideous shadow spoke thus; and so speaking 
and threatening, grew in shape ten times more dreadful 

(a) Scorpion; Gr, Lat. i. e. throwing out poison. A scor- 
pion is a black, short, and very poisonous serpent, with a small 
head like a crawfish, and a long tail with six or seven knots, 
wherewith it kills men and heasts* 



chap. in. PARADISE LOST. 101 

and deformed. On the other side, Satan stood terrified, 
and incensed with rage, and burned like a comet, that 
fires the length of Ophiucus (b) in the Artie (c) sky, and 
from his horrid hair is believed to shake war and pes- 
tilence. Each at the other's head levelled his mortal 
aim, their fatal hands intending no second stroke; and 
they cast snch a frown at one another, as when two 
black clouds full of thunder, come rattling on over the 
Caspian (d) sea, then stand front to front, hovering for a 
space, until the winds blow a signal for them to join 
their dark encounter in the midst of the air; so these 
mighty combatants frowned, insomuch that hell grew 
darker; so matched they stood: for never but once 
more w r as either of them ever like to meet so great 
a foe. And now great deeds had been performed, of 
which all hell would have rung, had not the other snaky 
form, that sat close by hell gate,^md who kept the fatal 
key, risen up, and rushed between with hideous out- 
cry. 

(&) Ophiucus; i. e. a serpent-hearer. An astron. term, a 
northern constellation, called also the serpent, representing a 
man holding a serpent in his hand; and consists of 29 stars, 
according to Ptolomy. The fable is taken from Hercules, who 
squeezed two serpents to death in his cradle. 

(c) Jlrtic; Lat. Gr. an astron. term, the Northern Circle, 
where there are two stars that go by this name, near the north 
pole; the Great Bear and the Little Bear. The opposite pole 
is called Antartic, or the southern pole. 

(rf) Caspian; Scyth. from the Caspii, an ancient people, who 
dwelt upon the south side of it; the Caspian sea is not a sea 
properly so called, nor a bay of the Northern ocean, as the an- 
cients thought; but a lake; aad the greatest in the world. It 
lies between Persia, Tartary, Georgia, and Muscovy: about 
3000 miles in compass; for though the Volga (which alone dis- 
charges more water in a year, than all the other rivers in Eu- 
rope) and 100 rivers besides, run into it; yet it hath no visible 
outlet. Therefore some think it riseth up in the Persian gulf, 
after running under ground above 2000 miles. 



. 



102 PARADISE LOST. book il 






She cried, Oh father! what does thy hand design 
against thy only son? Oh son! what fury possesses 
thee, to bend that mortal dart against the head of thy 
father? And knowest for whom too; for him who sits 
above, and only laughs at thee, who art ordained his 
drudge, to execute whatever his wrath commands, 
which he calls justice; his wrath, which sometime or 
other will destroy ye both. 

Thus she spoke, and at her bidding the hellish phan- 
tom forbore, and Satan made answer to her. 

Thy outcry, and thy words, which thou hast inter- 
posed, are so strange, that my hand has been prevent- 
ed by them, from letting thee know by deeds what I in- 
tend; until I know first of thee what thou art, thus 
double formed, and why on first meeting me on this 
infernal vale thou hast called me father, and that hor- 
rid shape my son: I Ifligw thee not, nor ever until now 
saw a sight more detestable than thee and him. 

To whom the portress of the gate of hell made an- 
swer, 

Hast thou forgot me then? And do I seem so very 
foul in thine eye now, who was once esteemed so fair 
in heaven, when at the assembly, and in sight of all 
the seraphim, who combined with thee in bold conspi- 
racy against the great King of heaven, all on a sudden 
a miserable pain seized on thee, thy eyes grew dim, 
and swam in darkness, while thy head threw forth 
flames thick and fast, until it opened on the left side; 
from whence I sprung, a goddess armed, most like to 
thyself in shape and brightness of countenance, then 
shining heavenly fair: all the host of heaven were seiz- 
ed with amazement; they started back, being at first 
afraid, and called me sin, and held me for an unlucky 
omen; but grown more familiar, I pleased, and with 
attracting graces, won those who before were most 
averse, and thee chief of all, who viewing in me a perfect 



chap. in. PARADISE LOST. 403 

image of thyself, becamest enamoured of me, and such 
joy didst often take with me in secret, that my womb 
conceived a growing burthen: mean while war arose in 
heaven, and battles were fought, whereon remained 
(for what else could) to our Almighty foe a complete 
victory; to our part loss and defeat through all heaven; 
down they fell, driven headlong from the skies, into 
this deep, and in the general fall I fell also; at which 
time this powerful key was given into my hand, with 
charge to keep the gates shut for ever, which none can 
pass without my opening. Here I sat, pensive and 
alone; but not long, before my womb, made pregnant 
by thee, and now grown excessively, felt prodigious 
motion, and pains of child-birth; at last this odious 
offspring, whom thou seest here, thine own begotten, 
violently breaking his way, tore through my entrails; so 
that distorted with fear and pain, my nether parts grew 
thus transformed: but he, my inbred enemy, issued forth, 
terribly shaking his fatal dart made to destroy: I fled 
away, and cried out, Death! at that hideous name hell 
trembled, and sighed from all her caves, and resound- 
ed back, Death! I fled, but he pursued (though more in- 
flamed, it seems, with lust, than witli rage) and being far 
swifter, overtook me his mother, quite overcome with 
fear; and in forcible embraces, and foul engendering 
with me in that rape, begot these yelling monsters, that 
as thou sawest surround me with ceaseless cry; with 
infinite sorrow to me hourly conceived, and hourly 
born; for when they list they return into the womb that 
bred them, and howl and gnaw all my bowels for their 
food; then bursting forth, put me to fresh and terrible 
pain, so that I neither find rest or intermission. Di- 
rectly opposite and before my eyes sits grim Death, 
my son and foe, who sets them on; and full soon would 
even devour me, his parent, but that he well knows 
that his eml is involved with mine: he knows that I 






104< PARADISE LOST. book h. 

should prove a bitter morsel and his bane, whenever 
that shall happen; so was it pronounced by fate. But 
I forwarn thee, my father! do thou shun his deadly ar- 
row; neither vainly have hope to be invulnerable in 
those bright arms of thine, though they were made in 
heaven, for that mortal stroke there is none can resist, 
excepting He who reigns above. 

She finished here, and the subtle fiend soon learned 
what was best for him to do; so that now grown mild- 
er, he answered thus smoothly: 

Dear daughter! since thou claimest me to be thy fa- 
ther, and she west me my fair son here (the dear pledge 
of dalliance which I had with thee in heaven, joys then 
sweet, now sad to mention, through the fatal change 
that has befallen us quite unthought of and unforeseen) 
I come not here as an enemy, but to set free from out 
this dismal and dark house of pain, both him and thee, 
and all the host of heavenly spirits, that armed in our 
just pretences fell with us from on high; I now go from 
them alone, so has it been my choice, on this uncouth 
errand, and expose myself, one for all, to tread with 
lonely steps the fathomless deep, and through immen- 
sity search with wandering inquiry a place, which 
was foretold should be created; and if we may judge 
by concurring signs it is now created; a large globe, a 
place of bliss, on the borders of heaven, and already 
therein is placed a race of upstart creatures, to supply, 
it may be, our vacant room, though removed farther 
off, lest heaven being over-stocked with too powerful 
a multitude, new broils might happen: whether this 
be, or any thing more secret now designed, I am has- 
tening to know; and this once known, I shall soon re- 
turn, and conduct ye to the place, where thou and death 
shall dwell at ease, and silently and unseen pass to 
and fro; there shall ye both be fed, and filled immea- 
surably, for all things shall be your prey. 



chap. in. PARADISE LOST. 105 

He ceased here, for they both seemed highly pleas- 
ed, and Death grinned horrible a ghastly smile, at 
hearing that his hunger should be satisfied, and blest 
his maw, that was destined to so good an hour; his 
bad mother did not rejoice less, who thus spake to her 
father Satan: 

By the command of heaven's all-powerful King, and 
by due right, I keep the key of this infernal pit; for- 
bidden by him to unlock these adamantine gates; Death 
stands ready to interpose his dart against all force, not 
fearing to be over-matched by any thing created: but 
what do I owe to his commands above, who hates me, 
and hath thrust me down hither into this gloom of pro- 
found hell, to sit here employed in this hateful office, 
once an inhabitant of heaven and heavenly-born, yet 
has doomed me to remain here in perpetual agony and 
pain, encompassed round with the terrors and clamours 
of my own brood, that feed themselves with my bow- 
els? Thou art my father, my author, thou gavest me 
being; whom should I obey and follow but thee? Thou 
wilt soon lead me to that new world of light and hap- 
piness, where among the gods who live at ease, I shall 
reign voluptuously at thy right hand, time without end. 

As she said this, she took from her side the fatal 
key, the sad instrument of all our woe, and rolling her 
snaky train towards the gate, forthwith drew up the 
great portcullice; which excepting herself, not all the 
combined powers of hell could once have moved; then 
turns the intricate wards in the key-hole, and with ease 
unfastens every bolt and bar, though of massy iron, or of 
solid rock: upon a sudden the infernal doors fly open, 
with a most violent rebound, and grating noise of the 
hinges, and jarring sound like harsh thunder, that the 
lowest bottom of hell's caverns shod?:. 

Thus she opened the gates, but to shut them again 
was beyond her power: they stood so wide open, that 



106 PARADISE LOST. book ii. 



an army with all its body and wings extended, march- 
ing under spread ensigns, might pass through, with all 
their horses and chariots, though ranked but in loose 
order: so wide they stood, and cast forth a vast smoke 
and red flame, like the mouth of a furnace. Before 
their eyes there suddenly appeared the secrets of the 
raging deep; a dark infinite ocean, without dimension 
or bound whatsoever; were length, breadth; height, 
and time, and place are lost; where eldest Night and 
Chaos, the first ancestors of nature, hold continual an- 
archy, amongst the noise of endless strife, and keep their 
station by confusion: for hot, cold, moist, and dry, four 






fierce champions; strive here for mastery, and bring to 
battle the imperfect particles of the first matter; and they 
swarm populous, each by nature tending to their own 
factions, in their several clans, whether light, heavy, 
sharp, smooth, swift, or slow, being numberless as the 
sands of Barca, (c) or the scorched soil of Cyrene, (d) 
which is lifted up with warring winds, and driven 

(c) Barca; Carthag. I. e. a desert; or from Amilcar Barca, 
the father of Hannibal, who is said to have founded it. A large, 
sandy, barren and dry country in Africa; so called from the ca- 
pital city of it, lying on the west of Egypt, on the Mediterra- 
nean sea, between Egypt and Tripoli, 600 miles from east to 
west, and 120 miles from south to north: others call it the San- 
dy Lybia: the chief city is 550 miles from Alexandria in Egypt. 
Barca separates Egypt from Cyrene. 

(d) Cyrene; Carthag. from Cyreno; i. e. a fountain, which 
springs from a mountain of the same name there; a very barren 
sandy province of Lybia, towards the great Syrtis, lying upon 
the Mediterranean sea near Egypt. Cyrene was built by Bat- 
tus the Lacedemonian, from whom the inhabitants were called 
Battidse, and gave the name to the whole country. It strove 
once with Carthage for some privileges. In the most southern 
part of it stood the famous temple of Jupiter Amnion; and was 
the birth-place of Simon, who carried our Saviour's cross to 
mount Calvary, Mat. 27. 32. Cyrene was also called Pentapo- 
lisj Gr. because it contained five fine cities of old. 



chap. iv. PARADISE LOST. ifcy 

about the air. What these most adhere to, rules for a 
moment; Chaos sits umpire, and by his decision em- 
broils the fray the more, by which he reigns; next him 
the high arbiter Chance governs all: such was this wild 
abyss, the deep womb of nature, and not unlikely but it 
shall be her grave, made up of neither sea, nor shore, 
nor air, nor fire, but all these mixed confusedly in their 
pregnant causes, and which must for ever fight thus, 
unless the almighty Maker ordain them, his dark ma* 
terials to create, and form new worlds. 



CHAPTER IV. 

With what difficulty Satan passes the gulf; directed by Chaos, 
the power of that place, to the sight of this new world which 
he sought. 

The wary fiend stood upon the brink of hell, and 
looked for a while into this wild abyss; for now he 
had no narrow sea to cross, nor was his ear less deaf- 
ened with loud and ruinous noises, than (to compare 
great things with small) when Bellona, (e) bent to de- 
stroy some capital city, storms it with all her battering 
engines; or as if this frame of heaven were falling, and 
these elements in uproar, had torn the stedfast earth 
from her axle. (/) 

(e) Bellona; Lat. i. e. the goddess of war. A deity among 
the old Romans; the mother, sister, and wife of Mars. She had 
many temples, priests, sacrifices, statues aud honours paid her; 
and was painted with a furious countenance, holding a trum- 
pet, a whip, and sometimes a lighted torch; to shew the dismal 
effects of war. In time of peace, her temple was shut up. 

(/) Axle; Sax. Lat. Gr. i. e. going round; a geog. term, 
an axle-tree. Here an imaginary line drawn through the cen- 
tre of the earth, from the north to the south pole; upon which 
the earth is supposed to move, in its diurnal motion from east 
to west. 






108 



PARADISE LOST. 



BOOK IX. 












At last Satan spread his wide wings, like sails, for 
flight, and lifted up in the rising smoke, spurns the 
ground; thence ascending, rides intrepidly many a 
league, as it were in a cloudy chair; but that seat soon 
failing, he meets nothing but the vast empty space: at 
unawares, fluttering his useless wings directly down he 
drops ten thousand fathoms deep, and to this hour he 
had been failing, had not the strong rebuff of a flying 
cloud, kindled with fire and ni^re, hurried him up as 
many miles aloft: that fury over, he lights on a. sink- 
ing quicksand, and nigh foundered, makes his way 
over what was neither sea nor good dry land, treading 
the crude substance of the abyss half on foot and half 
flying, that it was requisite for him now to use both oar 
and sail: as when a griffin (g) with winged course, 
over hell, through wilderness, or moorish vales, pur- 
sues the Arimaspian, (k) who by stealth had taken from 
his watchful custody the gold that he had guarded; so 
eagerly the fiend pursues his way over bog or steep 
hill, through strait, rough, solid land, or water, with 
head, hands, and wings or feet; and as he can best, 
makes his way; either swims, or sinks, or wades, or 
creeps, or Hies. At length his ear is assaulted with a 
universal uproar of stunning sounds, and voices all in 
confusion, which were borne through the hollow dark- 
ness; undaunted he bends his way thither, to meet 
there whatever power, or spirit of the lowermost abyss 

(g) Griffin or Griffon; Lat. Gr. i. e. to gripe fast or squeeze. 
A fabulous, terrible and rapaeioiis bird, said to be partly like 
an eagle, partly like a lion; guardians of hidden gold, and de- 
dicated to Apollo, the god and maker of gold, I. e. the sun with 
the heat of his rays. 

(h) Jirimasjjian; Seyth. from Ari, i. e. one and Maspos, i. e. 
an eye, one eyed; a people of Scythia or Little Tartary in Eu- 
rope, said to have had bat one eye. The truth is, they were 
expert archers, who shut one eye, that they might with th& 
more exactness hit the mark. Alexander the Great subdued 
them. 



chap, iv. PARADISE LOST. 109 

might reside there, of whom he might inquire, which 
way the nearest coast of darkness lay, that bordered 
upon light: when straight appears the throne of Chaos, 
and his dark pavilion spread wide upon the wasteful 
deep; enthroned with him sat dark and sable-habited 
Night, the eldest of tilings, and consort of his reign; 
and by them stood Orcus, (i) and Hades, (le) and the 
dreaded name of Demogorgon: (I) next Rumour, and 
Chance, and Confusion, and Tumult, and Discord, 
with a thousand various mouths, all these in continual 
mutiny; to whom Satan boldly turning, said thus: 

Ye powers, and spirits of this lowermost abyss, 
Chaos, ami ancient Night! I come not hither as a spy, 
with purpose to pry into, or disturb the secrets of your 
kingdom, but wander this darksome desert by con- 
straint, as my way up to light lies through your spa- 
cious empire; I seek which is the readiest path that 
leads where your dark bounds join to those of heaven; 
or if the celestial King possesses some other place 
lately won from your dominion, I travel this danger- 
ous path to go thither; do you direct my course, which 
if you do, it will bring no mean recompense to your 
advantage; if that region be lost, and I can (expelling 
thence all usurpation) reduce it to original darkness, 
and your sway (which is the intent of my present jour- 
ney) and once more establish there the government of 
ancient Nigiit; let yours be all the advantage, and only 
mine the revenge! 

(/) Orcus; Lat. from the Gr. L e. an oath; because the su- 
pernal gods made their oaths by Orcus, as well as by Styx, ano- 
ther name of hell. 

(k) Hades; Gr. Lat. i. e. a dark, hidden and invisible place; 
the same as Orcus or hell, in holy writ and sacred authors. It 
is esteemed to be the general receptacle of all souls departed 
this life, in a state of expectation, till the day of judgment. 

(I) Demogorgon; Lat. from the Gr. i. e. behold'mg the Gor- 
gon, which none could do but he; for she turned all things that 
looked on her into stones. 



HO PARADISE LOST. book ir. 

Thus spoke Satan, and thus old Chaos answered 
him, with a visage uncoinposed, and faltering in his 
speech: 

Stranger, I know thee, who thou art, that mighty 
leading angel, who lately made opposition against the 
King of heaven, though overthrown; 1 saw and heard; 
for such a numerous army did not fly in silence through 
the affrighted deep, with ruin upon ruin, and rout up- 
on rout, confusion worse confounded; and the gates of 
heaven poured her victorious bands in pursuit, out by 
millions. I upon my borders here keep residence, if 
all I can do will serve, I shall not be wanting to strive 
to defend that little which is yet left me, being conti- 
nually encroached on through our intestine wars, which 
weaken the power of old Night: first was hell, your 
dungeon stretching far and wide below; and now lately 
heaven and earth, another world, hung over my king- 
dom, linked in a golden chain, and is on that side of 
heaven from whence your legions fell: If that be the 
way you would go, you have not very far; so much the 
nearer are you to danger: go and success be with you, 
for all havoc, spoil, and ruin are my gain. 

He said no more, and Satan did not stay to make 
him a reply, but glad that he was like to find a shore 
to his sea, with fresh cheerfulness and renewed force, 
he springs upwards like a pyramid (m) of fire into the 
wide firmament, and forces his way through the shock 
of elements, fighting on all sides round him; in more 

(m) Pyramid; i. e. fire, a geometrical term. A pyramid is 
a heap of square stones, rising up like a flame of fire in four 
squares. There are about 80 pyramids near Grand Cairo, in 
Egypt, the wonder of the world to this day, though they have 
stood 4000 years, and may continue as long again; three of 
them are very large, besides many small ones. The Arabs call 
them Dgebel Pharaon and the Turks Pharaon Deglary, i. e. 
Pharaoh's hills. Mr. Lucas saw above 20,000 pyramids near 
Csesarea in Lesser Asia. 



ghap. iv. PARADISE LOST. Hi 

danger and harder beset, than when the Argo (n) pass- 
ed through the Bosphorus, (o) betwixt the crowded 
rocks; or when Ulysses (p) shunned Charybdis (q) on 
the larboard side, and steered by the whirlpool of Scyl- 

(n) Argo; Lat. Gr. i. e. swift; because of her swift sailing; 
being rowed with 50 oars, which was a new invention of Jason; 
or from the builder of it; and Cicero derives it from the Ar- 
gives or Greeks, who sailed in it. The ship wherein Jason 
and other valiant Greeks made a famous expedition to Colchis, 
now Mingrelia, Georgia and Iberia, upon the Pontus, to bring 
from thence the golden fleece into Greece. The expedition of 
the Argonauts, celebrated in ancient history, was in the reign of 
iEgeus, king of Athens, about A.M. 1741. Before Christ 1284. 
It was no more than a bold and new voyage to bring home fine 
wool, the valuable commodity of that country, as the British 
wool is now; or carry off the treasure of the king of Colchis, 
which consisted of gold, gathered out of the rivers, by the help 
of a ram's fleece; because Gaza, Heb. signifies a treasure and a 
fleece: the two bulls and a dragon were the two walls round the 
eastle, and a brass gate. For Sour, Heb. signifies both a bull 
and a gate; brass and a dragon. 

(o) Bosphorus, Bosporus, or Bosporus; Lat. from the Gr. i« 
e. the passage of an ox, as we say Oxford. A passage into the 
Euxine sea, by Constantinople, through which Jason passed 
with much difficulty and danger in his voyage. It is so strait 
and narrow, that cattle swim over it, and they hear the cocks 
crowing and dogs barking from one side to another. Now Stretti 
de Constantinople Ital. i. e. the straits of Constantinople. 

(p) Ulysses; Lat. Gr. i. e. all strength, robust; or contract- 
ed from his original name, Odusseus, Gr. i. e. the public road: 
because his mother, overtaken in a violent rain, was delivered 
of him on the high way. The son of Laertes, prince of Ittacha 
and Dulichia, islands in the iEgean sea; an eloquent, cunning 
Greek, celebrated by Homer, Virgil, Ovid, &c. After the siege 
af Troy, he is said to have suffered divers hardships for ten 
years more in his return home, particularly passing by Sicily. 

(</) Charybdis; Heb. i. e. a gulf of perdition; Lat. from the 
Gr. i. e. gaping and sucking in. A very dangerous part of the 
sea of Sicily, between Messina and Italy, where divers ships 
have been sucked in; and Ulysses had much ado to escape 
drowning. 



11$ PARADISE LOST. book ii, 

la: so did Satan move on, and pass with great difficulty 
and very hard labour; hut he having once passed, soon 
after when Man fell, was a strange alteration; for Sin 
and Death quickly following his path (such was the 
will of heaven) paved after him a very broad and beaten 
way over the dark gulf, and built thereon a bridge of 
wonderous length, continued from hell, and reaching 
to the utmost orb of this frail world; over which the 
perverse and fallen spirits pass and repass with an 
easy intercourse, to punish mortals, or lead them into 
temptation, excepting such, who by more especial 
grace, are guarded by God and good angels. 

But now at last appears the sacred influence of light, 
and far into the bosom of dim Night shoots a glimmer- 
ing dawn from the walls of heaven; Nature first begins 
here her farthest bounds, and Chaos retires from her 
utmost works like a broken foe, with less tumult and 
less hostile noise; so that Satan with little toil (and 
presently with ease) passes on calm waves, assisted by 
some small degree of light; and like a weather-beaten 
vessel is glad to find harbour, though her shrouds and 
tackling be all damaged and torn; or else in the emp- 
tier waste something resembling the air, lies on his 
spread wings to behold at leisure the distant empyreal 
heaven, in circuit extended wide, but its form and li- 
mits not determined; with towers of precious stones 
and battlements of living saphires, (r) once the native 
seat of Satan; and just by was this pendent world, 
hanging in a golden chain, in bigness about the size of 
one of the smallest stars, and close by the moon. Thi- 
ther accursed, and in an accursed hour he hastens, 
quite filled with malice and mischievous revenge. 

(r) Saphir; Lat. Gr. from the Heb. i. e. numbered; because 
one must pay down very dear for it. A very clear, hard, and 
precious stone, of the colour of the sky, with sparkles of gold, 
and the hardest next to a diamond: it was put into the breast- 
plate of the high-priest; Exod. xxviii. IS. Rev, xxi. 19. 



THE THIRD BOOK 



OF 



PARADISE LOST. 



THE ARGUMENT. 

God sitting on his throne sees Satan flying towards this world, 
then newly created; shews him to the Son who sat at his right 
hand; foretells the success of Satan in perverting mankind; 
clears his own justice and wisdom from all imputation, hav- 
ing created Man free and able enough to have withstood his 
tempter*, yet declares his purpose of grace towards him, 
in regard he fell not of his own malice, as Satan did, but by 
him seduced. The Son of God renders praises to his Father 
for the manifestation of his gracious purpose towards Man; 
but God again declares that grace cannot be extended towards 
Man, without the satisfaction of divine justice; Man hath of- 
fended the majesty of God by aspiring to godhead; and there- 
fore with all his progeny devoted to death, must die, unless 
some one can be found sufficient to answer for his offence, and 
undergo his punishment. The Son of God freely offers him- 
self a ransom for Man: the Father accepts him, ordains his 
incarnation, pronounces his exaltation above all names in 
heaven and earth; commands all the angels to adore him; 
they obey, and singing to their harps in full choir celebrate 
the Father and the Son. Satan lights upon the bare convex 
of the world's outermost orb, where he first fiuds a place since 
1*5 



114? THE ARGUMENT. 

called the Limbo of Vanity; what persons and things fly up 
thither. Satan comes to the gates of heaven, described as- 
cending by stairs, and the waters above the firmament that 
flow about it: his passage thence to the orb of the sun: he finds 
there Uriel the regent of that orb; but first changes himself 
into the shape of a meaner angel; inquires after the habita- 
tion of Man and is directed; alights first on the mount Ni« 
phates, 



CHAPTER t 

God sees Satan flying towards this world, foretells his success in 
perverting mankind; and declares his purpose of grace there- 
upon. 

Hail holy light! (who if not from everlasting with 
the Deity, art the first offspring of heaven) may I ex- 
press thee without blame? since God himself is light, 
and dwelling in light from eternity has always been 
unapproachable, always dwelt in thee, thou bright ef- 
fluence of the bright uncreated being; or shall 1 rather 
call thee a pure heavenly stream, whose fountain is 
God. Thou wert before the sun and the heavens, and 
at the voice of God didst adorn the rising world, which 
before was dark, and but just risen from the chaos, 
without form and infinitely void. Now 1 visit thee 
again with fresh courage, having long been treating of 
darkness, and hell, and the shades of obscurity; hav- 
ing been taught by the heavenly Spirit to venture down 
the dark descent, and to ascend up again to speak of 
thee. Thee I now safely revisit, and feel thy sove- 
reign quickening lamp; but thou revisitest not these 
eyes, that in vain roll to find thy piercing ray; so thick 
a darkness and suffusion hath veiled them and extin- 
guished, that they never find a dawn! Yet do I not 
for that reason cease to wander among clear springs, 
or shady groves, or sunny hills, where the muses haunt; 
the love of sacred song always delighting me. But 
chiefly Sion, thee I visit nightly, and the flowery brooks 
that wash thy hallowed foot, flowing sweetly; nor do 
/ 



116 PARADISE LOST. book hi. 

I forget sometimes those other two inspired writers, 
whom fate made equal with me, and to whom I wish I 
were equal in fame, blind Thamyris, (a) and blind 
Mseonides, (b) and Tiresias, (c) and Phineus, (d) who 

(a) Thamyris, Lat. Gr. i. e. wonderful. A poet of Thrace, 
who had the vanity to contend with the muses in singing, but 
lost it; therefore they put out his eyes, and took away his 
harp. This fable teaches us the danger and vanity of mocking 
God, of self-sufficiency and pride. 

(b) Mceonides; Lat. Gr. i. e. the son of Mazon^ for Homer , Gr. 
i. e. one that doth not see: because he despised the vanities of the 
world, not that he was really deprived of his eye-sight; others 
say, that his blindness came by an accident. But his proper 
riame was Melisegenes, from the river Meles, where he was born. 
He was so poor, that he begged his bread; yet when he was 
dead, seven cities, contended for the honour of his nativity; 
Smyrna, Rhodes, Colophon, Salamis, Chios, Argos, Athens. 
He was born according to the best account, A.M. 3120, 340 
years after the destruction of Troy, and 884 before the incarna- 
tion. An ancient and most celebrated poet among the Greeks, 
the wittiest man that ever lived, who had none to imitate (ex- 
cept Moses, from whom he took his best thoughts) was never 
matched by any that came after him, except now by Milton, and 
a pattern to all poets, philosophers and historians to this day. 
He wrote the wars of Troy in twenty -four books, called the Ili- 
ads, and the dangerous voyages of Ulysses, in the Odysses, in 
as many. The greatest veneration has been paid to his name 
in all ages: and Milton modestly wishes he might be equalled 
to him therein, though in many respects he hath exceeded Ho- 
mer himself, and Virgil also in epic poem, both in the gran- 
deur of his subject, in his learning, characters, and every thing 
else. 

(c) Tiresias; Lat. Gr. i. e. a star; because he foretold some tilings 
by the knowledge of astrology. A blind poet and a soothsayer 
of Thebes; long before Homer: the son of Evetrus and Chariclo. 
He was struck blind either for peeping too curiously upon Mi- 
nerva in the fountain Hypoerine; or for deciding the cause be- 
tween Jupiter and Juno to her dissatisfaction; for which Jupiter 
gave him the faculty of divination or soothsaying. 

(d) Phineus; Lat. Gr. i. e. shining, illustrious. A king 
and prophet of Arcadia, who for putting out the eyes of his 



chap. i. PARADISE LOST. 117 

were prophets of old. Then I feed on thoughts, that 
naturally move to harmony; as the wakeful nightingale 
in the dark, and hid in the thickest shade, sings her 
sweet song by night. Thus the seasons return with 
the year, but neither day, nor the sweet approach of 
evening or morning, or sight of blossoms in the spring, 
or summer's rose, or flocks, or herds, or face of Man, 
the image of his Maker, return to me; but instead of 
that a cloud and ever- during darkness surrounds me, 
cut off from the cheerful ways of men, and for the book 
of fair knowledge presented with an universal blot of 
nature's works, which are to me all expunged and 
erased, and wisdom at the great entrance of sight quite 
shut out: so much the rather do thou celestial light 
shine inward, and enlighten my mind through all her 
powers; there plant eyes, purge and disperse all igno- 
rance from thence, that I may see and tell of things 
which to mortal sight are invisible. 

Now the almighty Father had bent down his eye 
from above, from the pure heaven, where he sits high 
throned above all height, to view at once his own 
works and their works; about him the most pure and 
holy angels of heaven stood as thick as stars, and from 
his sight received unspeakable happiness: on his right 
hand sat his only Son, the bright image of his glory. 
He first beheld on earth our two first parents, Adam 
and Eve, as yet the only two of mankind, placed in 
the happy garden of Eden, (e) reaping immortal fruits 

children, and for revealing the secrets of the gods to men, was 
pu: ished with blindness. 

(e) Eden; an Hebrew word. It signifies pleasure and delight: 
because it was the most pleasant place upon earth, and Paradise 
was in it. Eden was a country in Chaldea, thought by some to 
be the same as Mesopotamia, near Babylon, lying between the 
Euphrates and the Tygris, well water ed with these and other 
rivers, and most fruitful. But the learned Huetius proves, thai 
Eden lay on the south of Babylon, and the terrestrial paradise 



118 PARADISE LOST. book in, 

of unrivalled love and uninterrupted joy in a nappy 
solitude. The eternal Father then saw hell and the 
gulf between, and Satan there coasting the wall of 
heaven, high in the thick air, and on this side of 
Night, ready to stoop with willing feel and tired wings 
upon the bare outside of this world, that seemed like 
land encompassed without firmament; nor could Satan 
at that distance, tell whether it was surrounded with 
air or water, (rod saw him from his high prospect, 
wherein he beholds all past, present, and future things, 
and foreseeing what was afterwards to be, thus spoke 
to his only Son: 

Only Begotten, dost thou behold what rage trans- 
ports our adversary, whom no prescribed bounds, nor 
bars of hell, nor all the chains heaped on him there, 
nor yet the vast gulf now separated from the new cre- 
ation can hold? so eager he seems for desperate re- 
venge, which shall fall upon his own rebellious head; 
now broke loose from his confinement, he takes his 
flight not far from heaven, and upon the borders of 
light, directly towards the world newly created, and 
towards Man placed there, with purpose to try if he 
can destroy him by force, or what is worse, by some 
allurement pervert him; which last will be the case; 
for Man will give ear to his flattering and deceitful 
lies, and transgress the only command which is the 
pledge of his obedience; so will he fall, and with him 
his faithless progeny. Whose is the fault? Whose 
but his own? Ungrateful, disobedient Man! I made him 

on the east side of Eden, between the first joining of the Eu- 
phrates and the Tygris, and there parting again, when they 
make the Pyson and the Gihon, which run into the Persian 
gulf at different mouths; as Moses has described these four ri- 
vers, Gen. ii. 8 — 16. De situ parad. terrestris. For these pro- 
perties it is highly commended in holy scripture, Gen. ii. 8. Isa. 
Ii. 3. Ezek. xxxi. 8, 9. &c. 



chap. i. PARADISE LOST. 119 

just and right, with power sufficient to have stood, yet 
left him free to fall; and so I created all the powers and 
spirits of heaven, both them who stood and them who 
failed; freely they stood who stood, and they who fell 
had the same freedom. Had they not been free, what 
sincere proof could they have given of allegiance, true 
love, or constant faith, where nothing would appear 
but Avhat they needs must do, not what they would? 
What praise could they receive, or what pleasure I, 
from such an obedience? When will and reason (for 
reason also is choice) stripped of their freedom, both 
become useless and vain, and would serve necessity, 
not me; they therefore as belong to right, were so cre- 
ated; nor can they with justice accuse me, their Ma- 
ker, or their making, nor blame their fate, as if predes- 
tination had over-ruled their will, disposed by high 
fore -knowledge and an absolute decree: their own re- 
volt they decreed themselves, and not I: if I did fore- 
know, my fore-knowledge had not the least influence 
over their fault, which had I not fore-known, had prov- 
ed no less certain: so without the least enforcement or 
imagination of fate, or any thing foreseen by me, which 
may hereafter happen, do they offend: authors to them- 
selves in every thing, as well of what they judge, as 
of what they choose: for I formed them free, and so 
they must remain until they enslave themselves; else 
I must change their nature, and abolish the high, un- 
changeable, and eternal decree, which ordained their 
freedom: it was they themselves ordained their fall: 
the first sort fell self- depraved, self- tempted, volunta- 
rily, and by their own evil thoughts: Man falls too, 
but is first deceived by the other: therefore Man shall 
find grace, but the other none; so shall my glory, both 
injustice and mercy, shine through heaven and earth; 
but that which first and last shall shine the brightest, 
shall be mercy. 



im PARADISE LOST. B00K in. 



CHAPTER II. 

The &o7i of God on his Father's declaring that divine justice 
must be satisfied for Man's sin, freely offers himself a ransom 
for them; which the Father accepts. 

While God spake, a sweet fragrance filled all 
heaven, and diffused afresh and unspeakable pleasure 
in the blessed and elect angels. The son of God wag 
seen most glorious and beyond compare; all his Father 
shone in him, expressed substantially, and in his face 
appeared visibly divine compassion, love without end, 
and grace without measure, which to his Father he 
thus gave utterance: 

Oh Father! that word was gracious which closed thy 
sovereign sentence, and which promised that Man 
should find grace; for which both heaven and earth 
shall highly extol thy praises, with the sound of innu- 
merable hymns and holy songs, which round about 
thy throne shall proclaim thee ever blest: for shall 
Man, thy creature late so beloved, created since the 
angels, be finally lost, and fall circumvented thus by 
fraud, though joined with his own weakness? Far be 
that from thee, great Father! who art judge of all cre- 
ated things, and who alone judgest right. Or shall 
the enemy thus obtain his ends, and frustrate thine? 
Shall he fulfil his wickedness and render thy good- 
ness useless, or proudly return to hell (though to a hea- 
vier doom, yet with his revenge accomplished) and 
draw after him the whole race of mankind corrupted 
by him? Or wilt thou thyself unmake and abolish for 
him, what thou hast made for a purpose of thy own 
glory? So shall thy goodness and thy greatness both 
be called in question, and be blasphemed without de- 
fence, 



chap. ii. PARADISE LOST. igi 

To whom the great Creator replied thus: my Bon, 
in whom my soul hath its chief delight, Son of my bo- 
som, who art alone my word, my wisdom, and my ef- 
fectual power! all the words that thou hast spoken are 
my thoughts, and as my eternal purpose hath already 
decreed: Man shall not be quite lost, but who will shall 
be saved, yet not wholly of will in him, but grace in me, 
freely bestowed on him; I will once more renew ids 
impaired faculties, though forfeited, and dragged by 
reason of sin to foul and exorbitant desires; yet once 
more upheld by me, he shall stand on even ground 
against his mortal foe, upheld by me; that he may fully 
know how frail his fallen condition is, and to me, and 
none but me, owe all his deliverance. Some, out of 
my peculiar grace, I have elected and chosen above 
the rest, such is my will; the rest shall hear me call, 
and have frequent warnings to leave their sinful state, 
and to appease betimes (while grace is yet offered) an 
angry Grod; for I will sufficiently clear their dark 
senses, and soften their stony hearts, until they pray 
and repent, and bring due obedience. To prayer, re- 
pentance, and due obedience, mine ear shall not be slow 
nor mine eyes shut. And I will place within them, as 
a guide, the great witness, conscience; whom if they 
will hear, they shall attain light after light, and perse- 
vering to the end, shall at last obtain eternal happi- 
ness: they who neglect and scorn the day of my grace, 
and this my long sufferance, shall never enter into my 
rest, but being hard shall be more hardened, and being 
blind shall be the more blinded, that they may make 
the more errors, and their fall may be the greater; and 
none but such have I excluded from mercy. But all 
is not yet done; Man disloyally disobeying me, has 
broke my commandment, and sins against the high su- 
premacy of heaven, coveting to be a God and losing 
all: to atone for his treason there is nothing left, but 

18 



122 PARADISE LOST. book hi. 

he with his whole posterity must die, devoted for de- 
struction; he must certainly die, or else justice must; 
unless some other, both able and willing, pay for 
him the complete satisfaction. Speak, Powers of 
heaven! where shall we find such love? Which of ye 
will become mortal to redeem mankind, and being just, 
be willing to die to save the unjust? Dwells there in 
all heaven so dear a charity? 

God asked the question, but the angels all were 
mute, and there was silence in heaven; there was none 
who so much as appeared on the behalf of Man, either 
to defend him or intercede for him, much less that durst 
draw upon himself the deadly penalty, or pay the ransom 
required. And now by the severe sentence of the Fa- 
ther, all mankind must have been lost, and condemned 
to death and hell without redemption, had not the Son 
of God in whom dwells the fulness of divine love, thus 
renewed his dear mediation: 

Father! thy word is past, that Man shall find grace, 
and shall not grace find out means, that finds her way 
the speediest of all thy messengers? That visits all thy 
creatures, unsought for, unasked for, and unmerited? 
Happy for Man that so it comes, for he once lost and 
dead in sin, can never seek her assistance, and being 
indebted and undone, hath no atonement or fit sacri- 
fice to bring for himself. Behold me then! I offer my- 
self for him, my life for his; let all thy anger fall upon 
me; account me as Man: for his sake I will leave thy 
bosom, and freely put off this glory, which I possess 
next to thee, and lastly with pleasure die for him: let 
Death execute all his rage on me, I shall not lie long 
under his gloomy power: thou hast given me to pos- 
sess life in myself for ever, and by thee I live: though 
now I yield up and give to death all of ine that can 
die; yet that debt once paid, thou wilt not leave me, his 
prey, in the loathsome grave, nor suffer my unspotted 



chap. ii. PARADISE LOST. 1£3 

soul to dwell with corruption there for ever; but I shall 
rise victorious, and overcome my vanquisher, and rob 
him of his spoils; Death shall then receive his last 
wound, and disarmed of his mortal sting, shall be de- 
stroyed; I shall lead hell captive in triumph, spite of 
hell, and shew all the powers of darkness bound; thou 
at the sight shalt look down pleased out of heaven, 
while I supported by thee ruin all my foes, Death the 
last of all, and with his carcase shall glut the grave; 
then after long absence shall return and enter heaven, 
with the multitude of my redeemed, to see thy face, 
wherein no cloud of anger shall remain, but assured 
peace and reconcilement; thence forward entire joy 
shall be in thy presence, and wrath shall be no more. 

Here his words ended; but his meek aspect, though 
he was silent, spake, and breathed immortal love to 
mankind, above which only shone filial obedience; he 
attends the will of his great Father, as a sacrifice glad 
to be offered up. All heaven was seized with admira- 
tion, what this might mean, and whether it would tend; 
but the Almighty soon replied: 

My sole delight! the only peace in heaven and earth 
found out for mankind, under wrath; thou knowest 
well how dear all my Avorks are to me, and it shows 
Man not the least so, though the last created; seeing 
that for his sake I spare thee from my bosom and right 
hand, to save (by losing thee for a time) the whole race 
that was lost: do thou, therefore, join thy nature also to 
theirs, whom thou alone canst redeem; and be thyself 
a Man upon earth among men; and made fiesh, when 
the fulness of time shall be, of virgin-seed, by a mira- 
culous birth: be thou in the room of Adam, (/) the 

(/) Jldam; I. e. red. The name of the first man and first 
woman: because they were formed of the red dust of the earth, 
Gen. ii. V. v. 2. As homo in Lat. is from humus, i. e. the 
ground: which points at both our original and end. 



■< 



424 PARADISE LOST. book hi. 

head of all mankind, though one of his sons; as in him 
all men perish, so as from a second root, in thee shall 
be restored as many as are restored, and without thee 
none: his crime makes all his sons guilty; thy merit ac- 
counted for theirs, shall absolve all those who renounce 
their own deeds, both righteous and unrighteous, and 
live ingrafted in thee, and receive new light from thee: 
so (as is most just) Man shall satisfy for Man, be 
judged and die, and afterwards rise again, and with 
him raise his brethren, ransomed with his own clear 
life: so hellish hate shall be outdone by heavenly love, 
giving itself to death, and dying; so dearly redeem 
what hellish hate destroyed so easily, and still does 
destroy in all those, who when they may will not ac- 
cept of grace. Nor shalt thou lessen or debase thy 
own nature, by condescending to assume that of Man; 
because, though enthroned in highest bliss, equal to 
God, and enjoying the same as the Father, thou hast 
quitted all, to save a whole world from utter loss, and 
hast been found the Son of God, by merit more than 
by birthright; formed worthy to be so, by reason of be- 
ing good, far more than by being great or high: be- 
cause love hath abounded in thee far beyond glory: 
therefore thy humiliation shall with thee exalt thy man- 
hood also to this throne; here thou shalt sit incarnate, 
and reign here, both God and Man, the Son both of 
God and Man, anointed the universal king; all pow- 
er I give unto thee, do thou reign for ever, and as- 
sume all adoration as thy merit; all the angels of 
heaven I put under thy government; to thee, as the 
supreme head, every knee, shall bow, of things in 
heaven, and things in earth, and things under the 
earth; when thou shalt appear in the sky, attended 
gloriously from heaven, and send from thee archan* 
gels, with a summons proclaiming thy dread tribunal: 
forthwith from all corners of the earth the living; 



chap. ii. PARADISE LOST. t%5 

shall hasten to the general doom, and the cited dead 
of all ages; (for such a peal shall rouse them from their 
sleep) then all thy saints being assembled, thou shalt 
judge bad men and bad angels, when they come to be 
arraigned, they shall sink beneath thy sentence, and 
hell (the number of the damned being filled up) shall 
be thenceforward shut up for ever. Mean while the 
world shall burn, and there shall arise from her ashes 
a new heaven and a new earth, wherein just men shall 
dwell; and after all their long persecutions and sufferings 
see happy days, that shall bring forth nothing but joy, 
love triumphing, and fair truth: after this thou shalt lay 
thy regal sceptre by, for there shall then be no farther 
use for it but God shall be all in all. All ye angels 
of heaven, give adoration to him, who to compass all 
this dies; adore him, who is my only Son, and honour 
him even as ye honour me. 

No sooner had the Almighty pronounced this, than 
the multitude of angels gave a shout, uttering joy; loud 
as from numbers which were not to be numbered, and 
sweet as from blest voices; heaven rung with (g) jubi- 
lee, and loud Hosannas (li) filled the eternal regions. 

(g) Jubilee; Lat. Gr. Heb. i. e. a ram and a ram's horn: be- 
cause the Jews proclaimed their feasts with the sound of trum- 
pets made of rams' horns, Lev. xxv. 8. The word came first 
from Jubal the son of Lainech, the inventor of musical instru- 
ments, Gen. iv. 21. 

{Ji) Hosannas; Lat. Gr. Heb. i. e. save we beseech thee, or God 
bless the king\ Solemn rejoicings among the Jews in the feast 

of tabernacles and congratulations to their kings. " And the 

" disciples went, and did as Jesus commanded them, and brought 
" the ass, and the colt, and put on them their clothes, and they 
" set him thereon. And a very great multitude spread their 
& garments in the way; others cut down branches from the trees, 
" and strewed them in the way. And the multitudes that went 
" before, and that followed, cried, saying, Hosanna to the son 
" of David: blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord, 
" Hosanna in the highest." 



126 PARADISE LOST. book m. 

Toward either throne they bow lowly, reverent, and 
cast down to the ground their crowns, with solemn 
adoration; crowns that were adorned with gold and 
immortal amaranth, a flower which once began to blow 
in Paradise, just by the tree of life: but after Man's 
fall was removed to heaven, where it first grew, now 
grows, and with its never-fading bloom shades the foun- 
tain of life, and all along where the clear river of bliss 
flows through the midst of heaven; with these immor- 
tal flowers the elect spirits bind their glorious locks, 
wreathed in with beams of light. Now the bright pave- 
ment, that shone like a sea of jasper, made purple with 
heavenly roses, was covered with the garlands which 
they had thrown off; afterwards taking their crowns 
again, and their golden harps that hung (always tun- 
ed) like quivers glittering by their side, with sweet 
preamble of charming symphony; they usher in their 
most sacred song and exalted praises, no voice being 
exempt; for such concord there is in heaven, that there 
was no voice but could well join in such melodious 
ecstasy. 

To thee, Oh! great God and Father of all! they sung 
first, almighty, unchangeable, immortal, infinite and 
eternal King! the author of all being, and the fountain 
of light, thyself being invisible, and not to be approach- 
ed amidst the glorious brightness where thou sittest 
en tl ironed; but then when thou casts a shadow over 
iha first blaze of thy beams, thy skirts appear, though 
drawn round about thee, like a radiant shrine; dark- 
ening with excessive brightness, and dazzling heaven, 
so that the brightest seraphim cannot approach, until 
they have veiled their eyes with their wings. 

Thee, first of all creation, thee they sung next, be- 
gotten Son! Divine similitude! in whose countenance, 
without a cloud and made visible in the flesh, the al- 
mighty Father shines, whom no creature else can be- 



chap. ii. PARADISE LOST. 127 

hold: on thee impressed abides the effulgence of his 
glory, and on thee rests his spirit, poured out in abun- 
dance and at full: by thee he created the heaven of 
heavens, and all the powers that are therein; and by 
thee threw down such of those, as through pride and 
ambition became rebellious: then thou didst not spare 
thy Father's dreadful thunder, nor stop thy flaming 
chariot wheels, that shook the everlasting frame of hea- 
ven; while thou drovest over the neck of the warring 
angels, routed and put to flight: returning back from 
the pursuit, thy holy angels celebrated thee with loud 
shouts, calling thee Son of thy Father's might, to ex- 
ecute fierce vengeance on his enemies: not so on Man; 
but he through the malice of devils fallen, thou Father 
of mercy and grace, didst not doom him so strictly, but 
much rather inclined to pity: no sooner did thy dear 
and only Son perceive that purpose, but he much more 
inclined to pity, to appease thy wrath, and end the con- 
test perceivable in thee, between thy justice and thy 
mercy, without regard to the throne of bliss whereon 
he sat, and second to thee, offered himself to die for 
the offence and disobedience of Man. Oh love! with- 
out example, love truly divine! Hail the Son of God, 
hail Saviour of men! henceforth thy name shall be the 
great subject of our song, nor shall our harps ever ne- 
glect thy praises, or separate them from the praises of 
God the eternal Father. 

Thus happily the angels spent their time in heaven 
above the starry sphere, in singing hymns of holy praise 
and songs of joy. 



±m 



PARADISE LOST. 



book in. 









CHAPTER III. 

Satan lights upon the bare convex of the world's outermost orb* 
tvhere he first finds a place since called the Limbo of Vanity, 

Mean while Satan lighted and walked upon that 
firm opacous globe of this round world, whose first con- 
vex divides the inferior orbs that are under it, and en- 
closes them from Chaos and Night: afar off it seemed 
a globe, but now a boundless continent, dark, waste, 
and wild, under the darkness of Night, exposed, star- 
less, with storms of Chaos always blustering round it, 
and an inclement sky; excepting on that side, which, 
though a great distance from the walls of heaven, gains 
some small reflection of glimmering air, less vexed with 
loud tempest; here the fiend walked at large; as when 
a vulture (i) upon the mountain Imaus, (Jc) (whose 
snowy ridge bounds in the roving inhabitants of Tar- 
tary) (l) having left a country where there was scarcity 

(i) Vulture; Lat. i. e. of a piercing sharp sight. A very vora- 
cious bird, bigger than an eagle, of an excellent sagacity of sight 
and smelling above all other birds; so that it can perceive the sa- 
vour of dead carcases fifty miles off; and appear two or three 
days before any great slaughter. They feed only upon carcases, 
but prey not upon any living creatures. 

(k) Imaus; Lat. Gr. Tat. contracted from Mus Tag, i. e. 
the mountain of snow, as the Tartars call it; being always co- 
vered therewith. A vast high mountain in Asia, a part of 
mount Taurus, rising from it near the Caspian sea; and ex- 
tending to the spring of the Ganges. It parts Tartary from 
India, dividing it into two parts, i. e. Tartary within and Tar- 
tary without the Imaus. Now Dalinguer. 

(I) Tartary; Syr. i. e. dark, a remnant; because they are 
thought to be the remainder of the ten tribes of Israel. Tar- 
tary, is a very large country between Muscovy and India, about 
3000 miles in length, and 2250 miles in breadth; the third part 



«hap. nt. , PARADISE LOST. 1^9 

of prey, with intent to devour the flesh of lambs and 
young kids, flies towards the springs of Ganges, (w) 
or Hydaspes, (n) (which are rivers of India) but in his 
way lights on the barren plains of Sericana, (o) where 

of Asia. The Romans called it Seythia, i. e. wrathful and fu- 
rious; or Teut. schieten 9 i. e. shooting; because i\\e Scythians 
were excellent shooters or marksmen. The Persians and Chi- 
nese call it Tataria and Tata, i. e. invaders and robbers, from 
Tatar, the eldest son of Alanza-Chan, who was their founder. 
The Tartars became better known in Europe about A.D. 1168, 
when they subdued part of Muscovy, and became masters of 
China; though it is not thoroughly known to this day. The 
epithet roving is very proper: because they wander about in 
companies, in tents, feeding their cattle, without any fixed 
houses, or habitations. See the genealogical history of the 
Tartars, translated from the Tartar manuscript, A.D. 1730. 

(m) Ganges; Ind. i. e. the river, or from a king of that name. 
A famous river of India, larger than any in Europe, except the 
Volga and Danube, especially when it overflows; but noted for 
the goodness and lightness of its water. The Indians say, it 
sanctifies them when they drink or wash themselves in it. 
Four or five hundred thousand of them are seen about it, throw- 
ing money into it, &e. which they think may be useful to them 
when dead. The Great Mogul and all others drink the wa- 
ters of it; for it is carried far and near, and sold at a dear 
price, because they foolishly fancy that it springs from Para- 
dise. It riseth on Mount Imaus in Tartary, divides the whole 
empire into two parts, after a course of 300 German miles, or 
1300 English, discharges itself into the bay of Bengal in five 
chief mouths. In some places it is five leagues over: there are 
many large islands in it beset with fine trees, which give a de- 
lightful prospect. It overflows at the usual time of the year, 
as the Nile, Niger, Euphrates, &c. from the same cause. Now 
called Ganga, by the inhabitants there. 

(ji) Hydaspes; Ind. from a king of that name. Another fa- 
mous river of India, which run by Nysa, Lahor, and other 
great cities, into the Indian ocean. 

(o) Sericana; Arab. i. e. the country of Seres; the posterity 
of Joktan, who from Arabia Feelix peopled that part of India, 
between Indus and Hydaspes near to China, now called Cathy: 

17 



ISO PARADISE LOST. book hi, 

the Chinese (p) drive their light cany wagons with 
wind and sails: so the fiend walked up and down, 
alone, upon this new region, bent on his prey; alone 
indeed, for in the place where he now was, no other 
creature might be found, living or dead; none as yet, 
but afterwards like airy vapours flew up from the earth 
great store of all transitory and vain things, when Sin 
had filled the works of men with vanity, and not only 
all vain things, but all who in vain things built their 
fond hopes of glory, or lasting fame, or their happiness, 
either in this or the other life; all who have their re- 

Tat. i. e. a great eastern country. Those ancient people were 
the inventors and first workers of silk, from whence it is called 
Sericum. This and China was called the silken kingdom; for 
in one province of China (as Le Comte says) there seems to be 
silk sufficient for all the world. See page 438. f Obs. Silk 
was known in Europe first in Justinian's time, about the mid- 
dle of the 5th century, by two monks who came from India. 

(p) Chinese; the people of China. The ancient Hebrews 
called it Sin; the moderns, Zin; the Arabs, Essin; the Persi- 
ans and Tartars, Ischin; and the Europeans, Sinarum Regio, 
and China, from the Sinae, from one of its ancient monarchs, 
Cina or Chine; or from Chuna:; i. e. the kingdom of the middle; 
because the Chinese think it lies in ilie middle of the earth: or, an 
excellent country: or, from Sem, whose posterity they are. China 
is a most ancient and large empire in the east of Asia: it was 
founded soon after the flood, and governed by its own emperors 
above 4000 years, till the Tartars expelled the last emperor, 
called Faetius or Fachir; A.D. 1278, and was not known to 
the Europeans till the 12th century. It is about 1380 miles in 
length, 1260 miles in breadth, and consists of 16 provinces, 
most of which are as large as any kingdom in Europe. The 
people, for their numbers, learning, laws, customs, &c. differ 
from all others, because they had no conversation with any. 
They are very cunning, conceited, industrious, almost all pa- 
gans, and grand cheats.* The Chinese have above 60,000 let- 
ters, yet not above 300 words, and write from the top to the 
bottom of the page. Their country is so plain, that in many 
places of it, they drive wagons made of a sort of cane, with 
sails and winds. 



chap. in. PARADISE LOST. £31 

ward upon earth, who go about only seeking to gain 
the praise of men, the fruits of painful superstition and 
blind zeal; such find here a fit retribution, as empty as 
their own deeds: all the unfinished works of nature, 
all that are abortive, monstrous, or not mixed accord- 
ing to kind, being dissolved upon earth fly hither, and 
wander vainly here until final dissolution; not in the 
neighbouring moon, as Aristo and some others have 
dreamed (that bright planet may more likely be sup- 
posed to be inhabited by translated saints, or spirits of 
a middle nature, betwixt the angelical and human kind) 
hither, to this Limbo of Vanity, came first those giants, 
who were born when the sons of God joined themselves 
ill to the daughters of those who were not of God: the 
next who came were the builders of Babel upon the 
plain of Shinar, (q) who still had they wherewithal 
would build new Babels: others came single, Einpe- 
docles, (r) who, that he might be thought a god, fondly 
leaped into the flames of the burning mount JEtna; and 

(q) Shinar; Heb. i. e. scattered: because the people were 
scattered over all the earth: or, striking out of a tooth, from 
the confusion of all languages, Gen. x. 10. A part of Chaldea, 
where Nimrotl built his tower. For countries were called from 
the captains of those that first settled in them: but this is so 
called, to keep up the memory of that sad accident to future 
ages. 

(r) Empedocles; Lat. from the Gr. i. e. stable in glory. A 
vainglorious philosopher, historian, and poet; and disciple 
of Pythagoras; born at Agrigentum in Sicily, the son of Meon, 
who once refused a kingdom. He flourished in the 84th Olym- 
piad, A.M. 35 j8, and before Jesus Christ 488. He wrote a 
book of natural philosophy in heroic verse, and is supposed to 
be the first that had any knowledge of rhetoric. To be honour- 
ed as a god after death, he stole from his company by night, and 
threw himself into the mouth of mount iEtna, as if lie had been 
translated into heaven: but the flames threw up his brazen san- 
dals, and soon betrayed his ambition. See Rorat. de arti poet. 
But others say, that he fell into the sea, and was drowned. 



132 



PARADISE LOST. 



BOOK IB, 



Cleombrotus, (s) who leaped into the sea, to enjoy tho 
elysium of Plato; (t) and many more too tedious to 
mention; Embrio's idiots, and hermits; (u) friars, white, 

(s) Cleombrotus; Lat. Gr. i. e. the glory of mortals. A fool- 
ish young Greek of Ambracia, a city of Epirus, who was so 
much taken with Plato's book of the immortality of the soul, 
that he leaped headlong from a wall into the sea, the sooner to 
be a partaker of the bliss in Elysium. Cicero, two of that name 
were kings of Sparta, long before this man. 

(/) Plato; Lat. from the Gr. i. e, broad: because he was hunch- 
backed, and broad in his forehead. His first name was Aris- 
tocles, Gr. i. e. the best glory; for the name of his grandfather; 
but he retained the latter. A famous philosopher, born at 
Athens, in the first year of the 68th Olympiad, A.M. 35/6, be- 
fore Jesus Christ 482, and died in the first year of the 88th 
Olympiad, before Jesus Christ 348, aged 81, and upon the same 
day he was born. Being an infant, and sleeping one day under 
a myrtle tree, a swarm of bees settled upon his lips, which was 
taken for an omen, that he should be very eloquent, which hap- 
pened to be true; and therefore he was called the Athenian 
Bee, for the sweetness of his style. By his travels into Egypt, 
Chaldea, India, and reading the books of Moses and the pro- 
phets, he attained great knowledge of God, religion, and nature; 
therefore he is called the divine Plato. He was scholar to So- 
crates, Euclid, and the best masters of the age. He was a no- 
table rhetorician, chief of the academics, and produced many 
eminent scholars: nay, the primitive Christians embraced his 
system of philosophy, as far nearer to the holy scriptures, than 
that of the Epicureans, Stoics, and Peripatetics. He has left 
many books, which are written in the form of dialogues, except 
only his epistles. Quintilian says, that he seems not to speak 
the language of men, but of the gods. 

(«) Her mites; Gr. i. e. dwellers in the wilderness. At first, 
holy men, for the sake of Christ and their lives, in hot persecu- 
tions, hid themselves in deserts, dens, and caves; and gave 
themselves wholly to fasting, praying, and great austerities. 
Paul the Theban, about A.D. 260, lived about 100 years in a 
cave: Anthony instituted the hermitical life in Egypt, and died 
A.D. 361. But the church of Rome hath made many innova- 
tions therein since. 



chap. in. PARADISE LOST. 13B 

black, and gray, with all their foolish trumpery: hi- 
ther pilgrims (x) roam, that have wandered so far, to 
seek him dead in Golgotha, (y) who lives in heaven; 
and they, who to be certain of going to Paradise, put 
on the weeds of Saint Dominie {%) when they are dy- 
ing, or think to slip in, disguised in the habit of Saint 
Francis: (a) they pass the seven planets, (b) and the 
fixed stars, and all that is talked of, of crystalline 
spheres and primum mobile: and now Saint Peter at 
the entrance of heaven seems to wait for them with his 
keys, and now they lift their feet as at the ascent of 
heaven, when a violent cross wind from either coast, 
blows them transverse through the pathless air, ten 
thousand leagues away: then cowls, hoods, and habits, 
with their wearers, are fluttered into rags: then re- 

(x) Pilgrims; Fr. from the Lat. i. e. strangers; men that 
travelled through foreign countries, to pay their devotions to 
saints departed, shrines, relies. The Christian pilgrims went 
to Jerusalem, Rome, St. Iago, &c. and the Turkish to Mecca, 
in Arabia, every year in solemn processions, to visit the tomb 
of Muhammed. 

(y) Golgotha; Keh. Syr. i. e. a scull: because of the sculls 
and other bones of criminals executed there. The place where 
Christ was crucified on mount Mori ah, upon the north side of 
Jerusalem, Mat. xxvii. 33. it was the same spot whereon Isaac 
w as to be offered 2000 years before, and was a lively type of this. 

(z) Dominic; vSp. Ital. Fr. La.t. i. e. the Lord. Dominions, 
a Spaniard, was the author of that order, called Dominican 
friars, instituted A.D. 1203. The inquisitors are of this or- 
der. Some ignorant creatures put upon dying persons a priest's 
robe of these orders, to carry them safe through pergatory. 

(a) St. Francis was an Italian merchant, first called John, 
who instituted the order of Franciscan friars, A.D. 1192. 

(/;) Planets; Lat. Gr. i. e. icandering stars; because of their 
various motions. An astron. term, they are seven in number, 
viz. Saturn, Jupiter, Mars, Sun, Venus, Mercurv, and the Moon. 



134 PARADISE LOST. book hi, 

liques, (c) beads, (d) indigencies, (e) dispensations, (/) 
pardons, bulls, (g) are all the sport of winds: all these 
whirled upwards, fly over the back side of the world 
into a large and broad Limbo, (h) since called the Pa- 
radise of Fools; which though now unpeopled and un~ 
trod, in process of time became unknown to few. 

(c) Reliques, or reticles, Fr. Ital. Sp. Lat. i. e. remains or 
fragments of the bodies and clothes of saints, preserved by Ro^ 
man catholics, with great veneration, viz. a finger, a toe, a 
tooth, a girdle, &e. and all worshipped by them. 

(d) Beads; Tent. Sax. Dut. i. e. prayers, round balls, made of 
amber, wax, wood, glass, silver, gold, commonly of 15 tens, &c. 
which the Romanists count at prayers, by reckoning of which 
they know how often they have repeated their pater-noster, 
ave-mary, credo, &e. as they are enjoined by their priests, even 
in the streets and at work; like the old Pharisees, Turks, and 
hypocrites. The heathens of Malabar use beads made of the 
bark of trees, as powerful antedotes against Satan, sin, and dan- 
gers, which are prepared by an holy order of men only, called 
antigods; and the Turks use beads also to perfume themselves. 

(e) Indigencies; Fr. Ital. Sp. Fort. Lat. i. e. bearing or coax- 
ing with one; relaxations or liberties, granted by the popes, to 
dispense with some duties, or removing the infliction of some 
temporal punishment, due for sins past, or to come. Cardinal 
Bellarmin affirms, that indulgences are granted for 25,000 years; 
but they are sold at a very high price. 

(/)' Dispenses, or Dispensations; Fr. Ital. Lat. sufferings or 
permissions granted by the popes, to do things contrary to the 
laws of God or man, for so much ready money. 

(g) Bulls; Lat. Gt. i. e. councils: because formerly they were 
granted by the consent of a council of state; or from Lat. i. e. 
ornaments, hung about the necks of children, like a seal; briefs, 
licenses of popes, to which leaden or golden seals were affixed; 
and purchased at a set price from the pope's exchequer. 

(k) Limbo; Ital. Sp. Lat. i. e. the border of a garment; Vul. 
Limbus Patrum. A place fancied by papists, bordering upon hell, 
where they say, the souls of all the patriarchs and other just 
men, from the beginning, were confined, till Christ at his pas- 
sion descended thither, and «et them at liberty. 



«hap. iv. PARADISE LOST. 135 



CHAPTER IV. 

Satan conies to the gates of heaven; his passage thence to the orb 
of the sun; where he finds Uriel the regent thereof, and upon 
inquiry is directed to the habitation of Man. 

Satan past on and wandered a great while, until 
at last a gleam of light caused him to direct his steps 
towards it; far distant he discovers a high structure, 
ascending by magnificent degrees up to the wall of 
heaven, at the top of which (but far more sumptuous) 
appeared what seemed to be a royal palace gate, with 
a front set off with gold and diamonds; the portal shone 
thick with sparkling jewels, impossible to be imitated 
upon earth, either in model or picture. The stairs 
were such as those were whereon Jacob (i) saw angels 
ascending and descending, bands of bright guardians, 
when he fled from Esau, (Jc) as far as Padan- Aram, (I) 

(i) Jacob; Heb. i. e. holding the heel; or tripping up his bro- 
ther's heels; because he laid hold of his brother's heel in the 
birth, as if he would deprive him of his birth -right at first, Gen. 
xxv. 26. A supplanter or deceiver, because he outwitted his 
brother Esau more than once, Gen. xxv. 27. 36. Hos. xii. 2. 
The second son of Isaac and Rebecca, and the father of the 
twelve patriarchs. He was born about A. M. 2130, and died in 
Egypt, 147 years of age. He was a grand master of astronomy, 
astrology, &c. and also a divine prophet. 

(Jc) Esau; Heb. i. e. wrought or perfected; because he was more 
complete at his birth than other children, being covered all dver 
with hair, as one that is old, and of a stronger constitution, 
Gen. xxv. 23. 

(/) Padan-Aram, Heb. i. e. a pair of rivers, viz. the Euphra- 
tes and the Tygris. It is called Padan only,*, e. & pair: some- 
times, Aram, i. e. a river of Aramia or Syria, sometimes JVaha- 
rajim, i. e. rivers; and Padan Aram. By the Greeks, Meso- 
potamia, i. e. in the middle of rivers. By the Arabs, Al-Gezira,, 
?". e. The island. By the Latins, Interamnia: because it lies 



136 PARADISE LOST. book nfe 

and the field of Luz, (m) as he by night lay dreaming 
under the open air, and waking from his sleep cried 
out, this is the gate of heaven: each stair was mysteri- 
ously meant, nor always stood there, but sometimes 
was drawn up to heaven out of sight; and underneath 
there flowed a bright sea of jasper* or of liquid pearl, 
whereon whoever came after from the earth, arrived 
sailing and wafted over by angels, or else flew over 
the lake, caught swiftly away, and drawn in a fiery 
chariot by fiery steeds, as Elijah the prophet was. At 
that time the stairs were let down, whether it were to 
dare Satan by the easiness of the ascent, or to make 
his exclusion from the gates of happiness more griev- 
ous; directly against which from beneath* just over the 
happy seat of Paradise, there opened a wide passage 
down to the earth (wider by far than that of after-times 
over mount Sion, or than that, though it was large) 
which was over the promised land so dear to God, by 
which his angels passed frequently to and fro to per- 
form his great commands, to them whom he beheld 
with a choice regard, being those who inhabited as far 
as from Paneas, (w) said to be the fountain of the river 

along the banks of two rivers: and by the modern Arabians 
Diarbec or Diarbech; i* e. the duke's country. To this coun- 
try Jacob was sent by his mother, to avoid the revenge of his 
brother, and dwelt 21 years. 

(m) Luz; Heb. Arab. i. e. a nut-tree, or rather the almond -^ 
tree: because many of those trees grew thereabout, an ancient 
city in Canaan. In memory of the glorious vision that Jacob 
had near to it, he called it Bethel, L e. the house of God, which 
name it kept for many ages after. 

{n) Paneas; Heb. from Pane and im, i. e. the mouth of the 
waters; because a vast flood of waters flow out of it. See Gen. 
xxxiL 30. And the source of the Nile, a fountain in Palestina, 
near the old town Lais or Lishem. Heb. i. e. a roaring lion, 
and the Panean cave; from which that country was called Pa- 
neas. It becomes, a rapid river, running through a fat soil. 



chap. iv. PARiVDISE LOST. 137 

Jordan, (o) quite to Beersaba (p) where the holy land 
borders upon Egypt and the coast of Arabia, (q) so 
wide seemed the opening where bounds were set to 

Pliny and other geographers of old thought it was the source 
of Jordan, but latter travellers have discovered the contrary; 
for that it is in mount Lebanon, four leagues above this. It is 
the outmost bounds of the promised land to the north, as Beer- 
shaba is to the south. 

(o) Jordan or Jarden; Heb. compounded of Jor. it e. descend- 
ing or rapid; or from Jarad: Heb. i. e. he descended: because 
of its rapid current from the mountains. And Dan: because it 
ran by the old city, Dan, from Dan the Patriarch, i. e. a judge. 
These two fountains uniting there, make the river Jordan, so 
famous for many miracles; as the Tame and Isis or Ouse unit- 
ing their streams, a little below Dorchester in Oxfordshire, 
make the river Thames. It is the chief river of Canaan, rising 
at the foot of mount Lebanon, runs by the borders of it on the 
east, thence to the south in a course of fifty leagues, until it 
loseth itself in the dead sea. By the way it makes two lakes, 
1st. The lake of Semechon or Meron, i. e. a harp, and bitter; 
beeause that lake represents a harp, and the waters are bitter: 
it is dry in the summer, Josh. xi. 5. 2i\]y. The lake of Genesa- 
reth, called the sea of Galilee, or the sea of Tiberias, John vi. 
i. forty -four miles from Jerusalem northward, four miles broad 
and twelve miles long. Jordan overflows the banks in March 
and April, from the snow and rains that fall upon the mountains, 
Josh. iii. 15. now it is not above twenty yards at the broadest, 
and about three or four yards deep, unless when it overflows, 
which Mr. Maundrel could not observe, though he was there 
at the proper time, viz. in March 30. A.D. 1697, which he sup- 
poses to be either, because its channel is deeper than it was of old; 
or because the waters of it may be diverted some other way. It 
is covered all along with trees, which make a pleasant sight, 
hut a dangerous and difficult coming at it. 

(;/) Beersaba, or Beersheba; Heb. i. e. the well of the oath 
or covenant: because there Abraham and Abimelech made an 
alliance upon oath, Gen. xxi. 32. A town situated upon the 

[(f) -Arabia; Heb. i. e. black, mixed, a robber: because the 
inhabitants of it are such: rather from Ereb, Heb. i. e. the west: 
because it lies on the west of Judea. A large eountry in Asia, 
18 



138 PARADISE LOST. book hi 

darkness, such as are set to the waves of the ocean, 
that they can go no farther. 

Satan now upon the lower stair, that leads up by 
steps of gold to the gates of heaven, looks down with 
wonder at the sudden view of all this world at once; 
just as when a scout has gone all night in danger 
through dark and desert ways, at last at the break of 
cheerful day climbs up to the top of some high hill, 
which unawares discovers to his sight the pleasant 
prospect of some foreign country he had never seen 
before, or some renowned metropolis, adorned with 
glittering towers and spires, which the rising sun gilds 
with his beams: such wonder seized the malignant 
spirit, though lie had seen heaven, but envy seized him 
much more at sight of all this world, which he beheld 
so beautiful. Round he surveys (and well he might 
where he stood so high above the circling canopy of 
the extended shade of Night) from east to west, and 
then from north to south he views in breadth; and with- 
out any longer pause throws himself downright into 
the world's first region, and winds this way and that 
way through the clear air, among numberless stars, 
that at a distance shone like nothing but what they 
appear to us, but nigh hand they seemed other worlds, 

utmost bounds of the holy land, forty miles from Jerusalem 
southward; and built upon that account. It belonged to the 
Edomites, then to the Simeonites. It was a great town in the 
days of St. Jerom. the Christians in the holy war, fortified it 
against the Turks and Arabs; since that time it belongeth to the 
Turks, and is much decayed. It is now called Gallim or Giblin. 

between Egypt and Judea, the Red sea and the Persian gulf, di- 
vided into the Stony, the Desert, and Happy. It was first peo- 
pled by Joktan and his thirteen sons; by Isinael, founder of the 
Hagarens or Saracens; then by Esau, and from him came twelve 
grand princes, and as many nations. 



chap. iv. PARADISE LOST. 139 

or happy islands like those Hesperian (r) gardens, so 
famous of old, plentiful fields, pleasant groves, and 
flowery vales, thrice happy habitations; but who dwelt 
happy there, Satan stayed not to inquire. Above them 
all the golden sun, likest in splendor to heaven allur- 
ed his eye; thither he bends his course through the 
calm firmament; but it is hard to tell his course thither, 
whether upwards or downwards, or in a direct line; 
where the great luminary, among the thick constella- 
tions, that keep due distance from liim, dispenses light 
from afar: they as they move turn their swift and va- 
rious motions, which compute days, months, and years, 
towards his all-cheering lamp; or else are turned by 
his attractive power that warms the universe gently, 
and with kind influence darts invisible virtue, even to 
the bottom of the ocean; so marvellously was he sat 
in his bright station: there landed Satan, a spot, like 
which perhaps no astronomer in the sun's shining orb, 
though helped by perspective glasses, ever saw: he 
found the place bright beyond all expression, compar- 
ed with any thing on earth, either metal or stone; not 
all the parts alike, but all alike enlightened in all parts; 
as red hot iron is by fire; if metal, part of it seemed 
gold, and part clear silver; if stone, most carbuncle, 
(s) or chrysolite, (t) or ruby, (u) or topaz, (x) or the 

(r) Hesperian; Lat. Gr. i. e. western. The famous gardens 
of Hesperus the brother of Atlas (said to he in the western is- 
lands of Cape Verd or the Canaries) which belong to Africa, 
and lie under the evening star (which the Greeks and Latins 
call Hesperus and Vesperus) wherein were golden apples, kept 
by a watchful dragon. The fable is taken from the garden of 
Eden, and the glorious fruits there. 

(s) Carbuncle; Dut. Teut. Ital. Span. Lat. i. e. a little burn- 
ing coal. A precious stone, resembling a burning coal in its lus- 
tre or colour. In Heb. bareketh^ i. e. lightning. In Gr. Smagrag- 
dos, i. e. light. It was the third of the first row of precious 
stones in Aaron-s breast-plate, whereon the name of Levi was. 



140 PARADISE LOST. book in. 

twelve that shone in the breast-plate of Aaron (y) or 
that, seen rather in imagination than elsewhere, alchy- 
mists have so long been in vain search after, though by 
their powerful art they bind quicksilver, and change 
matter into all manner of forms: what wonder then if 
the fields and regions here breathe forth pure elixir, and 
rivers run with liquid gold; when with one powerful 
touch the sun, though so far remote from us, and 

engraved, to shew that divine knowledge should shine in the 
priests of the Lord, to illuminate the church, Exod. xxviii. 17. 
Mat. v. 14. 16. It is an ancient but a vulgar error, to say, a 
carbuncle gives light in the dark. 

(t) Chrysolite; Lat. Gr. i. e. a golden stone: because it shines 
like gold. It is the first of the fourth row, on which xAsher 
was cut. It is of a sea-green colour, which shewed that his ha- 
bitation should be near the sea, Exod. xxviii. 20. Josh. xix. 24. 
Rev. xxi. 20. 

(u) Ruby; Lat. i. e. red: a precious stone of a glorious red 
colour, as red as blood. In Heb. Achlama, from which the 
Greeks call it amethyst, i. e. not to iaebriatej for it is reported 
to be an antidote to drunkenness. It is found in the East In- 
dies, the Stony Arabia, Armenia, Egypt, Cyprus, &c. It wasi 
the last of the third row, whereon Gad was inscribed; to teach 
him watchfulness and temperance; and was also a sign of his 
victories, which were predicted, Gen. xlix. 19. Exod. xxviii. 19. 
and fulfilled 1 Chron. v. 18, 19. 

(x) Topaz; Heb. from which the Greeks formed topazion, i. 
e, golden. A stone of a golden and green colour, found in Ethio- 
pia, Job. xxix. 19. And in the island Topazium, which lies in 
the Arabian gulf. It was the 2nd of the first row whereon the 
name of Simeon was engraven, Exod. xxviii, 17. Rev. xxi. 20. 

(if) Aaron; Heb. i. e. a mountain. This name was given him 
by inspiration, predicting his high advancement and dignity, 
and his death upon mount Hor, Heb. i. e. a mountain. The eld- 
est son of Araram, older than Moses by three years, yet named 
last; born in Egypt, about A.M. 2460. The first high-priest of 
the Jews by divine election. He died A.M. 2583, in the 123d 
year of his age, before Jesus Christ 1448, in the land of Edom. 
Justin through a gross mistake calls him Arvas and the son of 
Moses. 



chap. iv. PARADISE LOST. 141 

mixed with earthly matter, here in the dark produces 
so many precious things, of colour so glorious, and of 
so rare effect? Here the devil met new matter to gaze at, 
nor was he dazzled by so much light; his eye commands 
far and wide, for here was no shade or obstable to sight, 
for all was sunshine, as at noon; so now the sunbeams 
shoot upward, still direct, whence no way round can 
fall any shadow from dark bodies, and the air sharp- 
ened the eyes of Satan, to objects far distant, whereby 
he soon discovered within sight a glorious angel stand 
within, the same whoin St. John (z) saw also in the 
sun; his back was turned, but his brightness was not 
hid; a golden crown of the beams of the sun's rays en- 
circled his head, nor less bright were his locks that 
hung behind waving on his shoulders, which were co- 
vered with wings; he seemed employed on some great 
and important affair, or fixed in very deep contempla- 
tion. 

The impure spirit was glad of this, as being now in 
hope to find one who might direct his wandering flight 
to Paradise, the happy seat of Man, the proposed end 
of his' journey, and the beginning of our woe: but first 
he considers how he might change his shape, which 
else might bring him into danger, or be the cause of 
delay; and now he appears like a youthful cherub, not 

(z) St. John; Heb. Jehochanan; i. e. gracious. A proper name 
of men among the Jews, mentioned 1 Chron. xii. 12. Jer. xli. 11. 
John the Baptist, John the Apostle, John Mark, &e. Here the. 
Apostle and author of the book of the Revelations, who saw an 
angel in the sun. " And I saw an angel standing in the sun; 
" and he cried with a loud voice, saying to all the fowls that 
" fly in the midst of heaven, come and gather yourselves toge- 
" ther unto the supper of the great God. That ye may eat the 
" flesh of kings, and the flesh of captains, and the flesh of migh- 
" ty men, and the flesh of horses, and of them that sit on them* 
" and the flesh of all men both free and bond, both small and 
" great" 



14$ PARADISE LOST. book hi, 

one of the chief, yet such as youth smiled heavenly in 
his face, and to every limb diffused suitable grace; so 
well did he contrive to feign: under a coronet his flow- 
ing hair played upon either cheek in curls; he wore 
wings of many party-coloured feathers sprinkled with 
gold; his habit was girt about him, as fit for travel^ 
and he held in his hand, to help his steps, a silver 
wand. Satan did not draw nigh without being heard; 
the bright angel in the sun, admonished by his ear of 
his approach, turned his radiant visage, and immedi- 
ately was known by him, to be the archangel Uriel, (a) 
one of the seven who stand in the presence of God, 
nearest to his throne, ready at command, and are as 
his eyes that run through all the heavens, or bear his 
swift errands down to the earth, over sea and land; to 
him Satan approaches, and thus addresses himself: 

Uriel! for thou art wont to be the first of those se- 
ven spirits, that stand in the sight of God's high throne, 
gloriously bright, to bring his great authentic will 
through the highest heaven, and to be the interpreter 
of it; where all the other angels attend to hear thy em-r 
hassy, and here art likeliest by supreme degree to ob- 
tain like honour, and as his eye give frequent visitation 
to this new created world: an unspeakable desire to 
see and know all these his wonderful works, but chief- 
ly Man, whom he delights in and favours so much, 
and for whom he hath ordained all these, hath brought 
me thus wandering alone from the choirs of cherubim: 

(a) Uriel; Heb. i. e. the light of God. Milton from the sense 
of Ms name very properly imagines this angel to be the presi- 
dent of the sun: for the ancients thought that all the superior 
orbs were governed by some divine intelligence, which moved 
them to worship those orbs. One of the seven archangels of 
the presence; which seems to be taken from Zech. iv. 10. &c. 
not from Tobit xii. ±5. for that number mentioned there is an 
apocryphal story. However, this name is not found in holy 
scripture, but in the Apocrypha,, 2 Esdras, ch. iv. 1. 36. 



chap. iv. PARADISE LOST. 143 

Tell me, brightest seraph, in which of all these shin- 
ing orbs hath Man his fixed seat? (or has he his choice 
to dwell in which may please him best?) that I may 
find him out, gaze on him in secret, or openly admire, 
that I may behold him on whom the great Creator hath 
bestowed worlds, and on whom he hath poured all 
these graces; that in him and all things else, as is 
but meet, we may praise the universal Maker, who 
justly hath driven out to deepest hell his rebellious 
foes; and to repair their loss, created this new happy- 
race of men, to serve him better: wisdom is in all his 
ways. 

So spoke the false deceiver, without being perceiv- 
ed; for neither Man nor angel can discover hypocrisy, 
which is the only evil that walks invisible through hea- 
ven and earth, except to (rod alone, left so by his per- 
missive will; and oftentimes though wisdom keeps 
awake, suspicion sleeps, and while goodness thinks 
no ill, where no ill seems to be, to simplicity gives 
up the charge: so hypocrisy now for once beguiled 
Uriel, though he was regent of the sun, and esteemed 
to be the sharpest sighted spirit in all heaven; who to 
the foul and fraudulent impostor, according to the up- 
rightness of his own heart, thus returned answer: 

Fair angel! thy desire, which tends to the know- 
ledge of the works of God, thereby to glorify the great 
Work-Master, does not lead to any excess that de- 
serves blame, but the more it seems excess, rather 
merits praise, that led thee hither from thy heavenly 
mansion thus alone, to witness with thine own eyes, 
what many perhaps have only heard in heaven, con- 
tented with a report; for full of wonder indeed all 
his works are, pleasant to know, and always worthiest 
to be all had in remembrance with delight. But what 
created mind can comprehend their number, or the in- 
finite wisdom that brought them forth, but hid their 



144 PARADISE LOST. book ml 

causes in a depth not to be fathomed? I saw when the 
formless mass, the material mould of this world, came 
to a heap at his word; Confusion heard his voice, and 
wild Uproar stood ruled, and what had been thought 
vast infinitude became confined; after which at his se- 
cond bidding the darkness fled, light shone, and order 
sprang from disorder; the elements hasted swift to 
their several quarters; fire, water, earth, and air, and 
the purest §ether Hew upward, spirited with various 
forms, which in their motion became orbicular, and 
turned to numberless stars, as thou seest, and how they 
move; each had its course and place appointed, and 
the rest surround ancl encompass this universe. Look 
downward upon that globe, whose hither side shines 
from hence, though but with reflected light; that place 
is the earth, and the seat of Man; that light is his day, 
which were it not for that, Night (as she does the 
other hemisphere) would cover; but there the neighbour- 
ing moon (call that opposite fair star so) timely inter- 
poses her aid, her monthly round still ending and still 
renewing, through the midst of heaven; with borrowed 
light she fills her increasing and decreasing face to 
enlighten the earth, and checks tlie night in her pale 
dominion. That spot to which I point now is Para- 
dise, the abode of Adam; those loftv shades are his 
bower; the way thither thou canst not miss, that which 
requires me lies quite contrary. 

When he had said this, he turned; and Satan bow- 
ing low (as is usual to superior spirits in heaven, where 
none neglects due honour and reverence) took leave, 
and toward the coast of earth, down from the (b) eclip- 

(b) Ecliptic of eclipse; "Lai. Or. a. defect of light. Anastron. 
term, a great wide cirele in the heavens, extending between the 
two tropics, cross the equator; wherein the sun moves through 
the twelve signs of the zodiac in his yearly course; and there 
the eclipses do happen. 



chap, iv* PARADISE LOST. 445 

tic hastened with the hopes of success, throws himself 
down in steep flight, wheeling swiftly through the air; 
nor did he make the least stop, until he lighted upon 
the mountain Niphates. (c) 

(c) Niphates; Lat. Gi\ i. e. snowy; because it is generally 
covered with snow. It is a very high mountain, part of mount 
Taurus, between Armenia and Mesopotamia, not far from Para- 
dise, and the source of Euphrates and Tygris. 



19 



THE FOURTH BOOK 



OF 



PARADISE LOST. 



THE ARGUMENT. 

Satan, now in prospect of Eden, and nigh the place where he 
must now attempt the bold enterprise which he undertook 
alone against God and Man, falls into many doubts with him- 
self, and many passions , fear, envy, and despair; but at length 
confirms himself in evil, journeys on to Paradise, whose out- 
ward prospect and situation is described. Satan overleaps 
the bounds, sits in the shape of a cormorant on the tree of 
life, as the highest in the garden, to look about him. The 
garden described; Satan's first sight of Adam and Eve; his 
wonder at their excellent form and happy state, but with re- 
solution to work their fall; overhears their discourse; from 
thence gathers that the tree of knowledge was forbidden them 
to eat of, unde r penalty of death; and thereon intends to found 
his temptation, by seducing them to transgress; then leaves 
them for some time to know further of their state by some 
other means. In the interim Uriel descending on a sunbeam 
warns Gabriel (who had in charge the gate of Paradise) that 
some evil spirit had escaped the deep, and past at noon by his 
sphere in the shape of a good angel down to Paradise, disco 



14S 



THE ARGUMENT, 




vered afterwards by his furious gestures in the mount: Ga- 
briel promises to find him out ere morning. Night coming 
on, Adam and Eve discourse of going to their rest: their bow- 
er described; their evening worship. Gabriel drawing forth 
his bands of uight watch to walk the round of Paradise, ap- 
points two strong angels to Adam's bower, lest the evil spi- 
rit should be there doing some harm to Adam and Eve, sleep- 
ing; there they find him at the ear of Eve, tempting her in a 
dream, and bring him, though unwilling to Gabriel; by whom 
questioned, he scornfully answers, prepares resistance, but 
hindered by a sign from heaven, flies out of Paradise, 



CHAPTER L 

Satan, in prospect of Eden, falls into many doubts with himself, 
yet journeys on to Paradise, which is described. 

Never was there more need than now for that 
warning voice, which Saint John heard cry aloud in 
heaven, when the dragon, put a second time to rout, 
came furiously down to be revenged on men, woe to 
the inhabitants on earth! that now while time was, our 
first parents had been given notice of the coming of 
their secret enemy, and so perchance have escaped his 
mortal snare: for Satan now inflamed with rage came 
(the tempter before he was the accuser of mankind) to 
revenge on frail innocent Man his loss of that first 
battle, and his flight to hell. His courage now began 
a little to fail him, though afar off he was bold and fear- 
less; nor had he cause to boast the fatal attempt, the 
execution of which being near its birth, raises dark 
thoughts in him, rolls and boils in his tumultuous breast, 
and like a devilish engine recoils back upon himself; 
horror and doubt distract his troubled mind, and from 
the bottom stir the hell within him, for within him he 
brings hell, and round about him; nor can fly one step 
from hell by change of place, no more than he can fly 
from himself: now conscience wakes despair that slum-* 
bered, wakes the bitter remembrance of what he was, 
consideration of what he is, and what must be worse; 
for of worse deeds worse sufferings must be the conse- 
quence. Sometimes he fixes his grieved look towards 
Eden, which now lay pleasant in his view, and some- 



150 PARADISE LOST. book iv. 

times towards heaven and the full blazing sun, which 
was just now arrived to its meridian height; then re- 
volving much within himself, he thus began sighing. 

Oli thou! that crowned with surpassing glory, look- 
est from thy sole dominion, like the God of this new 
world; at the sight of whom all the stars hide their di- 
minished heads; to thee! I call, but with no friendly 
voice, and add thy name, O sun! to tell thee how much 
I hate thy beams, that bring to my remembrance from 
what state I fell: how glorious once did I sit, far above 
thy sphere! until pride and worse ambition was the 
cause of my being thrown down, for waging war in 
heaven against its matchless King. Ah wherefore did 
I so! he deserved from me no such return, whom he 
created what I was in that bright eminence: he up- 
braided none with the good gifts he gave; nor was it 
any hardship to serve him: What could there be less 
than to afford him praise (which is the easiest recom- 
pense) and pay him thanks? How justly was all this 
due! yet all his good proved ill in me, and worked 
nothing but malice: for being lifted up so high I dis- 
dained subjection, and thought that one step higher 
would set me highest of all, and so in a moment quit 
me of the immense debt of endless gratitude; so bur- 
thensome it is always to be paying, and still to owe; 
forgetful that from him I was still receiving; and did 
not consider, that a grateful mind by acknowledging 
the benefit, owes not, but so pays, at the same time 
indebted and discharged: where was the hardships 
then? O had his powerful destiny ordained and made 
me some inferior angel! then I had stood happy; no 
unlimited hope had raised ambition in me! and yet 
why not? Some other power as great as I might have 
aspired, and drawn me, though a spirit of meaner rank, 
to his party: but other powers as great did not fall, 
but stand now unshaken, armed against all temptation, 



chap, i. PARADISE LOST. 151 

either from without or within. Hadst thou the same 
free will and power to stand as they? Thou hadst! 
whom hast thou then to accuse? or what? but heaven's 
free love equally dealt to all? Accursed be his love 
then! since be it love or hate, it alike deals out to me 
eternal misery: nay, let me be accursed! since I chose 
freely against his will what I now so justly repent. 
Miserable wretch that I am! which way shall I fly 
from infinite wrath, and from infinite despair? Which 
ever way I fly is hell; I myself am hell, and in the 
lowest depth; a lower deep opens wide, always threat- 
ening to devour me, to which the present hell I suffer 
seems to be a heaven. O then relent at last! Is there 
no place left for repentance! Is there none left for par- 
don? No there is none left, but by submission; and 
that disdain forbids me, and the fear that I have of 
shame among the spirits beneath, whom I seduced 
with far different promises and other vaunts than sub- 
mission, boasting, that I could overcome the Omnipo- 
tent. Ah me! little do they know how severely I suf- 
fer for that vain boast; under what torments I groan 
inwardly, while they adore me, high advanced on the 
throne of hell, and distinguished with sceptre and dia- 
dem: (a) so much the lower still I fall, only supreme 
in misery; such joys does ambition find! But say that 
I could repent, and could by an act of grace retain 
my former state; how soon would height recall high 
thoughts? and how soon unsay what feigned subinis- 

(a) Diadem; Fr. Ital. Sp. Lat. from tlie Gr. i. e. binding about. 
What the Syrians call Mitra, the Greeks named Diadema, and 
the Latins Vitta, says Scaliger. A white fillet or scarf, like 
the Turkish turban; wherewith the ancient prinecs of Persia, 
and the priests also, tied a crown about their heads: a king's 
crown. Alexander the Great brought the use of it first into Eu- 
rope, as Justin reports. Csesar and Caligula refused it; but 
Aurelian was the first Roman emperor that wore a diadem. 



i5% PARADISE LOST. book iv, 

sion had sworn! Ease would recant vows that were 
made in pain, as violent and void; (for never ean there 
grow a true reconcilement, where wounds of so deadly 
hate have pierced so deep) which would but lead me 
on to a worse relapse, and a fall still heavier; by which 
means I should dearly purchase a short intermission of 
my present torments, bought at the price of double 
smart. IVIy punisher knows this, and therefore is as 
far from granting peace, as I am from begging it. All 
hope thus excluded, instead of us, now outcast and ex- 
iled, behold his new delight, mankind created, and 
this world for him: so farewell hope! and with hope 
farewell also fear! farewell remorse! all good is lost to 
me; evil be thou henceforth my good! by thee at least 
I hold a divided empire with the King of heaven, and 
by thy means perhaps will reign more than half; as 
Man, before it is long, and this new world shall know. 
While he was thus speaking, the passions that mov- 
ed him, dimmed his face, and he changed countenance 
thrice and grew pale, with anger, envy, and despair, 
which altered his borrowed visage and betrayed him to 
be a counterfeit, if any eye beheld him; (for heavenly 
minds are always clear from such distempers) whereof 
he being soon aware, with an outward calm smoothed 
each perturbation, contriver of fraud! and was the first 
that practised falshood under a faintly outside, to con- 
ceal deep malice with thoughts of deep revenge: yet 
had he not practised enough to deceive Uriel, whose 
eye pursued him down the way he went, and saw him on 
the mountain Niphates, disfigured more than could be- 
fall spirits of happy kind: he marked his fierce gestures 
and mad demeanor, supposing himself to be then all 
alone, unobserved and unseen. So on Satan journeys, 
and comes to the border of Eden, where delicious Para- 
dise crowns the campaign head of a steep wilderness 
with her green enclosure, which makes a rural fence; 



chap. i. PARADISE LOST. 153 

whose shrubby sides overgrown with thickets, wild and 
grotesque, denied all manner of access, and over head 
grew an unsurmountable height of loftiest cedars, (b) 
pines, firs, and wide-spreading palm, (c) and as the 
ranks ascend shade above shade, many a pleasant Syl- 
van scene, a woody theatre, stately to the view: yet 
higher than their tops, the green enclosure and banks 
of Paradise sprung up; which gave to Adam a large 
prospect into his lower empire, neighbouring round the 
mount of Paradise: and higher than that wall appeared 
a circling row of beautiful trees, loaden at once with 
blossoms and fairest fruit of golden hue, mixed with 
gay enamelled colours, on which the sun had left 

(&) Cedar; Fr. Lat. from the Gr. a very large, thick, and 
tall tree, with small and slender leaves. It is always green, 
never decays, and is detestable to worms; because of its bitter 
sap; the ancients anointed their books with it, to keep them 
from being worm-eaten; my lord Bacon thinks the wood of it 
lasts 1000 years sound. It grows chiefly on M. Lebanon, and 
in the woods of America, was much in esteem of old, and highly 
celebrated in scripture, but now is very much decreased. 

(c) Palm; Fr. Brit. Teut. Ital. Sp. Dut. Lat. from the Gr. 
i. e. the hand expanded; because its leaves resemble the palm of 
a man's hand. The palm or date tree. It was used of old as a 
sign of victory, and victory itself: because the more it is op- 
pressed, the more it riseth and spreadeth. The palm was used 
in the service of God. " And ye shall take you on the first day 
ii the boughs of goodly trees, branches of palm trees, and the 
" boughs of thick trees, and the willows of the brook; and ye 
" shall rejoice before the Lord your God seven days." And is 
said to be worn in Paradise itself, Rev. vii. 9. " After this I 
66 beheld, and lo,a great multitude, which no man could number, 
" of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues, stood be- 
" fore the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, 
" and palms in their hands." It was also the sign and reward of 
victory in all the Grecian games. The ancients honoured vic- 
torious princes with spreading of palms and flowers before them 
in their triumphs. The Jews received Alexander the Great, and 
our Redeemer, and they of Cremona, Vitellius, in this fashion. 
20 



154 Paradise lost. book m 

the beauty of his beams, more strongly painted than 
he does on a fair evening cloud, or on the rainbow, 
wjien God hath sent rain upon the earth; so lovely did 
that landscape seem: and now purer air still meets Sa- 
tan's approach, which to the heart inspires vernal de- 
light and joy, able to chase away all sadness except 
despair: now gentle gales disperse natural perfumes, 
sweets which they fan from flowers, and betray from 
whence they stole them: as when to them who sail be- 
yond the Cape of (rood Hope, and are got past JVlozam- 
bic, (d) north-east winds blow Sabean (e) odours off at 
sea, from the spicy shore of Arabia Felix, well pleas- 
ed with such delay they slacken their course, and the 
ocean seems to smile, cheered with the grateful smell; 
so Satan entertained these rich perfumes, who came to 
be their bane, though better pleased with them than 
Asmodeus (/) was with, the smoke of the burnt fish, 
that drove him (though he was so much enamoured 
that he destroyed seven of her husbands) from the wife 
of Tobias, and sent him from Media (g) into the ut- 
most parts of Egypt, where the angel Raphael bound 
him fast. 

(d) Mozambic, Mezambica, and the French call it Mozambi- 
que. Ethiop. A little island with a chief city built upon a ri- 
ver of the same name, upon the east coast of Africa, belonging t« 
Zanguebar, 270 miles from Madagascar to the west. It is bar- 
ren and unhealthful, but populous: because of the great trade 
with the Portuguese, who possess it now. 

(e) Sabean, of Saba; from Seba or Saba, the son of Chus, the 
sixth son of Cham, Gen. x. 7. Saba is the chief city of Arabia 
the Happy, now Zibit, where there is a great store of cinnamon, 
cassia, frankincense, myrrh, and other sweet spices. 

(/) Jlsmodeus; Heh. i. e. a destroyer or fire. A prince of 
devils amongst the rabbies. An evil spirit, who is said to have 
haunted the house of Raguel; to be in love with his daughter 
Sarah, and to have destroyed seven husbands in the first night 
of their marriage, Tob. iii. 8. 17. 

(g) Media; Heb. from Madai the son of Japhet, Gen. x. 2* 
i. e. a measure: because he was of a large stature. A larg? 



cjhap. ii. PARADISE LOST. 155 



CHAPTER II. 

Paradise described; Satan's first sight of Adam and Eve, at 
which he is greatly surprised; overhears their discourse, and 
from thence meditates their destruction. 

Now Satan had journeyed on, pensive and slow, 
to the ascent of that steep and inaccessible hill, but 
found no further way; the undergrowth of shrubs and- 
tangling bushes had twisted themselves so into one 
cluster, that they denied a path to whatever might as- 
say to pass that way: there was only one gate, and 
that looked east on the other side, which when Satan 
saw, he disdained to enter properly, and in contempt, 
at once leaped over all bounds, of hill or highest wall, 
and quite within, lights on his feet: as when a prowl- 
ing wolf, driven by hunger to seek new haunts for his 
prey, watching where the shepherds pen their flocks 
in the sheep-cotes at evening, leaps over the fence 
amidst the field, and gets securely and with ease into 
the fold; or as a thief with an intention to rob some rich 
merchant (whose substantial doors, cross-barred and 
bolted fast, cannot be broke open) climbs in at the 
window, or at the top of the house: so did this first 
great thief climb into God's fold; (so do since lewd 
hirelings climb into his church) from thence he flew 
up, and upon the middle tree in Paradise (which was 
the tree of life, and the highest that grew there) sat 
like a cormorant; yet did not thereby regain true life, 

country and ancient kingdom in Asia, on the north of Persia, 
near Georgia, and upon the Caspian sea, having Armenia and 
Assyria on the west. It was once mistress of the eastern mo- 
narchy of the Medes, for 317 years, but soon fell into the Per- 
sians^ then became subject to the Turks. Now Servan or Shiryan. 



156 PARADISE LOST. book iv. 

but instead of that sat devising death to them who lived; 
nor did he think of the virtue of that life-giving plant, 
hut only used to take a view of Paradise, what well 
used had been the pledge of immortality. (So little 
does any but God alone know to set a right value on 
the things before him, but either perverts the best things 
to the worst of abuses, or else to their meanest use) 
with new wonder now he views beneath him Nature's 
whole wealth, exposed in narrow room to all the de- 
light of human sense; nay it was more; it was a hea- 
ven on earth; for the garden was the happy Paradise 
of God, by him planted in the east of Eden; Eden was 
stretched out from Auran (li) eastward, to the royal 
towers of great Seleueia, (i) built by the kings of 
Greece; or where the sons of Eden dwelt in (k) Telas- 

(Ji) Auran, Haron 9 or Charan; Heb. i. e. ivrath. The chief city 
of Mesopotamia, whither Abraham fled from the wrath of God: 
because of the idolatry of the Chaldeans, and also dwelt for a 
time, Gen. xi. 31. Acts vii. 4. Jacob went to it afterwards for 
fear of Esau's wrath, Gen. xxix. which giveth name to a large 
country upon the river Tygris. It is also called Aram and Ara- 
mia; from Aram the son of Sem, i. e. mighty; and is what we 
call Syria. This city is 440 miles northward from Jerusalem; 
now called Ophea. It is eleven days journey from Nineve; po- 
pulous, and hath a good trade. 

(i) Selucia; Lat. Gr. i. e. a glaring light. Another famous 
city of Mesopotamia, called also Calne in the land of Shinaz, 
Gen. x. 10. Coche, then Alexandria; because it was rebuilt by 
Alexander the Great; afterwards repaired by Antiochus king 
of Syria, who called it Seleueia in memory of his father Seleu- 
cus, Gr. i. e. glorious. It is forty miles from old Babylon up- 
on the confluence of the Euphrates and the Tygris; the Turks 
possess it now, and call it Bachda or Bagdad. 

(k) Telessar, and Elassar; Heb. i. e. a fort or rampart of the 
Assyrians. A country upon the borders of Assyria, wherein 
the Edenites were garrisoned to guard Babylon, from the en- 
croachments of the Assyrians, Isa. xxxvii. 12. Ezek. xxiii. 23. 
Between these places the true Eden and Paradise were situat- 
ed. Yid. Huet. de Situ Paradisi. 



ghap. ii. PARADISE LOST. 15y 

sar. In this pleasant soil had Grod ordained his far 
more pleasant garden, and to grow out of the fertile 
ground all trees of the noblest kind, whether for sight, 
smell or taste; and exactly in the middle stood the 
tree of life highly eminent, bearing ambrosial fruit, and 
blossoms of vegetable gold; and next to the tree of life 
grew our death, the tree of knowledge; the knowledge 
of good, bought too dear through the knowledge of ill! 
Through Eden southward there went a large river, 
which never changed its course, but underneath the 
shaggy hill being ingulfed passed through; for God 
had thrown that mountain as his garden fence, high 
raised upon the rapid current, which through veins of 
the porous earth drawn up with a kindly thirst, rose a 
fresh fountain, and watered the garden with many a 
stream; thence united fell down the sloped shade, and 
met the lower flood, which now appears from his dark- 
some passage, and now being divided into four main 
streams runs different ways, wandering through many 
a famous realm and country, whereof there needs no 
account here; but rather to tell how (if art could tell 
how) from that saphire fountain the curled brooks roll- 
ing over bright pearls and sands of gold, ran. nectar 
with many a winding course under the spreading 
shades, visiting each plant and feeding the flowers of 
Paradise, which bountiful nature and not nice art had 
poured forth profusely, in beds and curious knots in 
hill, dale, and plain, both where the morning sun first 
smote warmly the open field, and where the unpiereect 
shade held the bowers in pleasing darkness, even at 
noon. 

Thus this place was a happy rural seat, with variety 
of prospect and groves, some of whose rich trees drop- 
ped balm and sweet gums; others, whose fruit hung 
delightfully, streaked as it were with burnished gold., 



158 PARADISE LOST. book iv. 

and of delicious taste; what was fabled of the Hespe- 
perian fruit true only here: betwixt these groves were 
lawns, or level downs, among which were dispersed 
flocks, grazing upon the tender grass; or hills of palm, 
or else the flowery edge of some well watered valley- 
spread its store; ftWers of every hue, and roses with- 
out thorns. Another side shady grottos, and caves of 
cool recess, over which the spreading vine laid forth 
her purple grapes, and gently crept with her increas- 
ing and wanton branches; mean while the murmuring 
waters fall dispersed down the slope hills, or else unite 
their streams in a lake, that as it were holds a mirror 
to the bank grown over with sweet myrtle. The birds 
apply their choir with vernal airs, which breathing 
the smell of the fields and groves, make music in the 
trembling leaves, while nature, attended by the seasons 
and the hours, led on a continual spring: not that fair 
field of Enna, (I) where Proserpine (m) gathering flow- 
ers was ravished by Pluto, which caused Ceres all that 
pain to seek her through the world; nor that sweet 

(/) Enna; Chal. Phoen.i. e. & garden mid fountain. Enna is 
the same as Eden, in the language of the Phoenicians; which 
they borrowed from Moses, Gen. ii. 8. A most pleasant field 
in the heart of Sicily, abounding with springs, fruits and flow- 
ers. There was a city, a temple of Ceres, and a fine grove: 
and out of it Pluto stole and carried off Proserpine into hell. 

(m) Proserpine; Lat. i. e. creeping out. The daughter of 
Jupiter and Ceres, ravished by Pluto. Her mother Ceres went 
to hell to get her released; but because she had tasted a pome- 
granate in Pluto's orchard, Jupiter could do no more, than give 
her leave to accompany her six months above; and Pluto six other 
months below. Of the rape of Proserpina, see Pindar. Ode 1. 
This fable hath nothing else m it, than that the corn, fruits, 
&c. lie six months in the ground, then creep out of it, and flou- 
rish six months above it; and Ceres was an inventress or im- 
proveress of husbandry, &c. The poets make her the queen of 
hell. 



gitap. ii. PARADISE LOST. 159 

grove of Daphne, by the river Oronte-s, (n) and the in- 
spired spring of Castalia (o) might by any means be 
compared to this Paradise of Eden; nor that island of 
Nysa, (p) surrounded by the river Triton, (q) where 
Cham, (r) the youngest son of Noah (whom the Gen- 
tiles call Ammon (s) and Lybian Jove) hid (t) Anial- 

(n) Orontes; Gr. Lat. i. e. rapid. The largest river in Sy- 
ria, rising on M. Lebanon, washing many cities in its eourse; 
it runs by and through Antioeh into the Mediterranean sea. 

(o) Castalia; drab. i. e. a purling stream. A fine spring at 
the root of Parnassus, sacred to the muses: because the pleasant 
sound of it gliding down that hill, elevated the imagination. 
Here is another of this name by the grove of Daphne at An- 
tioeh, which foretold Hadrian's advancement to the empire. 

(?) Nysa; Heb. i. e. a banner or refuge. A city of Arabia, 
within the isle of Nysa, upon the river Triton, where Bacchus 
was nursed, as they report. This fable took its original from 
that history related in Exod. xvii. 15. where Moses built an al- 
tar to Jehovah Nissi, Heb. i. e. the Lord is my banner, upon the 
victory over Amalek: for Bacchus is Moses among the hea- 
thens. Henee Bacchus was ealled also Dionysius, i. e. God of 
Nysa, or the Nysa of Bacchus. 

(</) Triton; drab. i. e. a pasture. A river in Africa, which 
issues out of the lake Triton in the Mediterranean sea, over 
against the Lesser Syrtis, and d ivides Lybia into two equal 
parts. Now Rio de Capo. 

(r) Cham, or Ham; Heb. i. e. heat or blackness; the third 
and youngest son of Noah, Gen. ix. 24<. and Jupiter among tha 
Gentiles. In the first division of the earth, Syria, Arabia, 
Egypt, and all Africa fell to his share. 

(s) Amman; or Hammon; Heb. i. e. heat. Another name of 
Cham, whom the old Egyptians and Grecians worshipped under 
this denomination. His temple and famous oracle stood in Cy- 
rene on the west side of Egypt and the deserts of Lybia. 

{t ) Amalthea; Chald. i. e. a nurse; Gr. i. e. very rich or multi- 
plying: daughter of Melissus king of Crete, a mistress and nurse 
of Jupiter, who fed him with goat's milk and honey; and mo- 
ther of Bacchus. Jupiter gave her a horn of plenty, which 
supplied every thing. 



160 PARADISE LOST. book iv, 

thea and her youthful son Bacchus, (u) from her step- 
mother Rhea; nor could the mountain Amara (x) be 
compared to Paradise, where the kings of Abassinia (y) 
guard their children (though by some supposed to be 
the very place) under the equinoctial line, and by the 
head of Nile, encompassed with shining rocks, a whole 
day's journey high; but in reality far remote from this 
Assyrian garden, where Satan without any pleasure 
beheld all delight, all kind of living creatures strange 
to him, and quite new to his sight. 

Two of shape far more noble than the rest, upright 
and tall 3 erect like gods, clothed with native honour 
and in naked majesty, seemed lords of all, and seemed 

(u) Bacchus; Heb. Barchus, i. e. the son of Chus. The na- 
tural son of Jupiter by Amalthea (others say) by Semele, which 
may be the same woman, by a different name. He first planted 
vines and made wine: therefore he was esteemed the god of 
wine. 

(x) Amara, or Jlmkara, Heb. and Ethiopic; for the latter has 
a near resemblance to the former language; for example, Abinu 
in the Heb. is our father; Abana in the Ethiopic is the same; 
so they call their archbishop. Amara is a province under the 
equinoctial, and one of the kingdoms of Abyssinia, or Upper 
Ethiopia, almost in the middle of it, on the south. There is a 
mountain of the same name, abou t 90 miles in compass, a days 
journey high, and encompassed with rocks, with only one en- 
trance to it. On the top are many beautiful palaces, wherein 
the emperor's children are educated, and the younger sons kept 
tmtil they die, that they may not disturb the government. 

(y) Jlbassinia: from Ahasseni; Jlrab. & scattered people; an an- 
cient people of Arabia, near Sabeea, of the posterity of Joktan. 
who settled afterwards in Ethiopia Superior; and there erected 
a vast empire of 28 or 30 distinct kingdoms. The Portuguese 
discovered this empire to the Europeans, A.D. 1500. And the 
Dutch call it the country of Prester John, from Unchan Ja- 
hannan, one of the emperors of it, about A.D. 1200. The Up- 
pe* Ethiopia upon the Red sea and the Persian ocean, on the 
east side of Africa. The inhabitants are all black, and for the 
most part Christians. 



chap. ii. PARADISE LOST. I6i 

worthy to be so; for in their divine looks shone the 
image of their glorious Maker, truth, wisdom, and 
sanctitude, pure and severe (severe, but placed in true 
filial freedom) whence comes true authority in men; 
though they did not seem equal, as their sex was not 
alike: he was formed for valour and contemplation, 
she for softness and sweet attracting grace; he only for 
God, but she for God and him: his fair large forehead 
and elevated eye declared absolute rule, and his brown 
hair, round from his parted forehead hung, curling, but 
not beneath his broad shoulders: she wore her un- 
adorned fair hair, loose as a veil, down to her slender 
waist, but waved in wanton ringlets as the vine curls 
its tendrils, which implied subjection, but required 
with gentle government, and by him best received 
when yielded by her with coy submission, a modest* 
pride, and a sweet, reluctant, yet amorous delay: nor 
were those mysterious parts hid which men now con- 
ceal; then was not guilty and dishonest shame of na- 
ture's works (the name of honour! but dishonourable) 
bred from sin, how has it troubled all mankind with 
mere shews of seeming pure, instead of being so? and 
banished from Man the greatest happiness of his life, 
his native simplicity and spotless innocence! So they 
passed on naked, nor strove to shun the sight of God 
or the angels, for they thought no evil: hand in band 
they passed along, lovelier than any pair that ever since 
met in the embraces of love; Adam more excellent in 
form than any of his sons since born, and Eve fairer 
than any of her daughters. 

Under the shade of a bower that stood on a green, 
the trees whispering softly, by a fresh fountain's side, 
they sat them down, and after no more toil of their 
sweet gardening labour, than served to recommend the 
cool air and make ease more pleasant, and wholesome 
thirst and appetite more grateful, they began to eat of 
21 



163 



PARADISE LOST. 



BOOK IV. 






the fruits of the garden for supper, delicious fruits, 
which the loaded boughs yielded them; as they sat lean- 
ing along the side of the soft downy bank, sprinkled 
with flowers, they chewed the savory pulp, and then 
in the rind, as often as they were thirsty, scooped 
up the brimming stream; nor was there wanting en- 
dearing smiles, gentle purpose, nor youthful dalliance, 
as beseems a fair couple bound in the happy nuptial 
league, and alone as they were. About them all the 
beasts of the earth played wantonly (though since that 
grown wild) beasts of all chace, in wood or wilderness, 
den or forest; the lion sporting about ramped up, and 
in his paw, dandled the kid; bears, tygers, ounces, 
and leopards, played before them; the unwieldy ele- 
phant used all his might to make them mirth, and 
twisted about his limber trunk; the sly, close, insinu- 
ating serpent, twisted his train in many a fold, and un- 
observed gave proof of his fatal subtlety; others of the 
beasts couched upon the grass, and now filled with 
pasture, sat gazing or lying down, and chewing the 
cud: for the sun was declined, and hastening with 
swift career to the ocean islands, and on the other side 
of heaven the stars that introduced the evening arose: 
when Satan, who all this while stood gazing as at first, 
at length scarcely recovered power of speech as follows: 
Oh hell! what do my eyes with sorrow and grief be- 
hold! Creatures of another mould advanced into our 
room of bliss; perhaps earth-born, and not spirits, yet 
to bright heavenly spirits little inferior; whom my 
thoughts pursue with wonder, and whom I could love, 
so lively the divine resemblance shines in them, and 
such grace the hand that made them hath bestowed 
upon their form. Ah gentle pair! little do you think 
how near your change approaches when all these de- 
lights will vanish, and deliver you up to misery; more, 
misery by as much as now your taste of joy is more: 



chap. ii. PARADISE LOST. 163 

now happy, but that happiness too ill secured to con* 
tinue long, and this high seat, your heaven, too ill de- 
fended, to keep out such a foe as is entered now; yet 
no proposed foe to you, whom I could pity thus un- 
guarded, though I myself am unpitied. I seek a 
league with you and mutual amity, so close and strait, 
that henceforward I must dwell with you, or else you 
with me: perhaps my dwelling place may not delight 
your senses, like this fair Paradise, yet such as it is 
accept it; your Maker's work; he gave it me, and I as 
freely give it: to entertain you two, hell shall unfold 
her gates the widest, and send forth all her kings: there 
(not like these narrow limits) will be room to receive 
your numerous offspring: if it is no better place thank 
him who puts me unwilling to take this revenge on you 
who wrong me not, instead of him who wrongs me. 
And should I (as indeed I do) melt to pity at your 
harmless innocence; yet public reason, just honour, 
-and revenge, and empire, by conquering this new 
world, compel me now to do, what else (notwithstand- 
ing I am damned) I should abhor. 

Thus spoke the fiend, and with the tyrant's plea, 
necessity, excused his devilish deeds. Then from his 
lofty stand upon the tree of life, he lights down among 
the sporting herds of those four-footed beasts, turning 
himself into the form sometimes of one and sometimes 
of another, as their shapes served his end best, to view 
his prey nearer, and unobserved to mark what by words 
or actions he might learn further of their state: now he 
stalks round about them like a lion, with a fierce glare; 
then as a tyger, who by chance hath spied two gentle 
fawns at play in some purlieu, strait couches down 
close, then rising, changes his cunning watch as one 
who was choosing his ground, from whence rushing out, 
he might surest seize them both, griped in each paw; 
when Adam, the first of all men, turning himself to 



164 PARADISE LOST. book iv. 

Eve, the first of women, began this moving speech, 
which turned Satan all to attention: 

Sole partner, and dearest of all these joys; dearer 
than all! that power that made us, and for our use and 
comfort all this great world, must needs be infinitely 
good, and of his good be as liberal and free as he is in- 
finite; that raised us from the dust, and then placed us* 
here in all this happiness, who have merited nothing 
from him, nor are able to perform any thing of which 
lie hath any need: who requires no other service from 
us, than to keep this one easy charge, that of all 
the trees in Paradise, which bears such various and 
delicious fruit, we are only forbid to taste that tree of 
knowledge, which is planted by the tree of life, so near 
is death placed to life; whatever death be: no doubt 
some very dreadful thing; for thou knowest well God 
hath pronounced it death to taste of that tree: among so 
many signs of power and rule he has conferred upon 
us, and dominion which he hath given us over all other 
creatures that live on earth, in sea, or in the air, this 
is the only sign left of our obedience: then do not let 
us think one easy prohibition hard, who enjoy so 
large and free a liberty in all things else, and have an 
unlimited choice of manifold delights: but let us praise 
him r rever, and extol his bounty, following our plea- 
surable task to prune these growing plants, and tend 
upon these flowers; which if of itself were toilsome, yet 
with thee would seem sweet and pleasant. 

To whom Eve replied thus; Oh thou! from whom 
and for whom I was formed, flesh of my flesh, and 
without whom my being would be to no purpose, my 
guide and head! what thou hast said is just and right, 
for we indeed owe all praises and daily thanks to him; 
but I chiefly, who enjoy so much the happier lot by 
enjoying thee, who art more noble and excellent by so 
much odds; whilst thou canst find no where any thing 



chap. ii. PARADISE LOST. 163 

that is equal to thyself. I often remember that day 
when I first waked from sleep, and laid down under a 
shade upon flowers, wondering much where I was and 
what I was, from whence, and how I was brought thi- 
ther: not a great way from thence a sound of murmuring 
waters flowed forth from a cave, and spread into a li- 
quid plain, which then stood unmoved and clear as the 
sky; I went thither with unexperienced thought, and laid 
me down upon the green bank, to look into the smooth 
and pure lake, that seemed to me to be another sky: 
as I bent myself down to look, just opposite appeared 
a shape in the water, bending to look upon me; 1 started 
back, and that started back also; but I being pleased 
soon returned, and that as soon returned, and as pleased, 
with answering looks of sympathy and love: there until 
now had I fixed my eyes, and pined away with vain de- 
sire, had not a voice thus warned me. " Fair creature, 
what thou there seest is nothing but thyself, it came 
with thee, and with thee it goes away; but follow me, 
and I will bring thee where something more than a 
shadow waits for thy coming, and for thy soft em- 
braces; it is he whose image thou art, thou shalt enjoy 
him inseparably, to him shalt bear multitudes of crea- 
tures like thyself, and thence shalt be called the mother 
of human kind." What could I do else but immedi- 
ately follow, being led thus invisibly, until I saw thee 
under a platan? (%) Fair indeed and tall, and yet me- 
thought less fair, less winning and soft, and less ami- 

(z) Platan (in the lat. edit. Plantan, which is wrong) Gr. i. e. 
broad; because the leaves of it are very broad and spreading 
wide, which make a cool, refreshing, and welcome shade in hot 
countries; the plane-tree. It grows very large and well spread 
in Macedonia; the body of it is a clear green, smooth as glass, 
very straight, and about 20 feet high; the leaves are eight or 
ten feet long, and four feet broad; and the heart of it is a com- 
mon food in south America, 



166 



PARADISE LOST. 



BOOK IV. 



ably mild than that other smooth watery image: I turn- 
cd back, thou criedst aloud, followed me, fair Eve 
return; from whom dost thou fly? whom thou fliest 
from, of him art thou made, his flesh and bone; to give 
thee thy being I lent substantial life, nearest my heart 
and out of my side, to have thee by my side; hence- 
forth an individual and dear comfort, I seek thee as 
part of my soul, and lay claim to thee who art my 

other half! With that thy gentle hand took hold 

of mine; I yielded; and from that time see how much 
beauty is excelled by manly grace and wisdom, be- 
sides which nothing is truly fair. 

So spake our first and general mother, and with eyes 
of conjugal attraction and meek surrender, half em- 
bracing him, leaned upon Adam; half her naked swell- 
ing breast met his, hid under the flowing tresses of her 
golden hair: he, in delight both of her beauty and her 
submissive charms, smiled with superior love, as poets 
feign Jupiter to smile on Juno, (a) when he makes the 
clouds fruitful, that shed May flowers; and he press^ 
ed her matron lip with frequent and pure kisses: — — 
The devil turned aside for envy; yet with a jealous 
and malicious look eyed them, and thus complained to 
himself: 

Hateful and tormenting sight! thus these two in the 
Paradise of one another's arms (the happiest Eden) 
shall enjoy their fill of bliss upon bliss; while I am 
thurst to hell, where there is neither joy nor love, but 
what among others is not the least of our torments, 
fierce desire pines with pain of longing, never satisfied 
nor quenched. Yet do not let me forget what I have 
gained from their own mouths: it seems all is not theirs; 

(a) Juno; Lat. i. e. help or assistance. An heathen goddess, 
the sister and wife of Jupiter; she goes under various names 
among the ancient poets. By this fable they meant the air and 
earth which came both out of one womb, the Chaos. 



chap. ii. PARADISE LOST. 16? 

there stands one fatal tree, called the tree of knowledge, 
forbidden them to taste: knowledge forbidden; and 
why? that is suspicious and without reason: why should 
their Lord envy them that? Can it be any sin to gain 
knowledge? can that deserve death? and do they stand 
perfect only by their ignorance? is that their happy 
state? their faith, and the proof of their obedience? 
What a fair foundation is here laid, whereon to build 
their ruin? for this cause I will excite a greater desire 
to know, and to reject envious commands invented on- 
ly with a design to keep them low, whom this prohi- 
bited knowledge might exalt and make equal with 
Gods: perhaps aspiring to be such, they taste, and die, 
what can likelier be the consequence? but first I must 
walk round this garden with very narrow search, and 
leave no place undiscovered; a wonder if chance may 
not lead me, where I may meet some wandering spirit 
of heaven, retired in some thick shade, or near some 
fountain, from whom I may learn what I want farther to 
know. Ye happy pair! live while ye may, and un- 
til I return enjoy short pleasures, for the woes are 
long whieh are to succeed. Having said this, he scorn- 
fully turned his proud steps aside, and began to make 
his search, though with slyness and great circumspec- 
tion, through woods and plains, and over the hills and 
valleys. 



16S 



PARADISE LOST. 



BOOK lY* 



CHAPTER III. 

Uriel warns Gabriel, that some evil spirit had passed by his 
sphere. JSTigiit comes on, Adam and Eve discourse going to 
their rest: their bower described and evening worship. 

Mean while the setting sun descended slowly, 
and levelled his evening rays directly against the east- 
ern gate of Paradise: it was a rock of alabaster, piled 
up almost as high as the clouds, so that it might be 
easily seen from far; accessible from the earth only by 
one entrance, with a winding ascent; the rest was a 
craggy ciiif, impossible to climb, that hung over still 
as it rose. Betwixt these rocky pillars sat Gabriel, 
(b) the chief of the guard of angels waiting for night; 
about him the unarmed youth of heaven exercised he* 
roie games, but nigh at hand hung celestial armory, 
shields and helmets, and spears adorned with diamonds' 
and gold. Thither came Uriel, gliding upon a sun- 
beam, swift as a shooting star that in autumn falls in 
the night, when fired vapours impress the air, and 
shews the mariner from what point of his compass he 
may beware of impetuous winds: Uriel in haste thus 
spoke to Gabriel: 

Gabriel! to thee it belongs, and it is thy charge by lot, 
to keep strict watch, that to this happy place .no evil 
thing may approach, much less enter in: this day at 
high noon there came to my sphere a spirit, seemingly 
zealous to know more of the works of the Almighty, 

(b) Gabriel; Heb. i. e. The strength or might of God. The 
Arabs call him Jibrael, and the Tartars, Sabriel: through ig- 
norance of the original, and corruption of their different tongues. 
The rabbies account him the minister of God's mercies: and 
Michael, of his Justice: therefore they call him water, and the 
latter, fire. 



0bap. ni. PARADISE LOST. 169 

and chiefly of Man, the latest image of God; I directed 
him in his way to Paradise, whither he was bent in 
haste, and I marked his airy gate: but in the mount 
that lies north from Eden, where he lighted first, I 
soon discerned by his looks that he was an alien from 
heaven, and darkened with foul passions: my eye pur- 
sued him further, he hid himself in darkness: I fear 
that one of the banished and outcast angels hath ven- 
tured from the deep to cause new troubles; so that thy 
care must be to find him out. 

To whom the warlike angel Gabriel gave this an- 
swer; Uriel! it is no wonder if thy perfect sight see 
far and wide, where thou sittest amid the sun's bright 
circle: none pass by the watch placed at this gate, but 
such as come well known from heaven, and from thence 
no creature has entered since noon; if spirit of other 
sort being so resolved, have leaped over these earthly 
bounds on purpose, thou knowest how hard it is to ex- 
clude spiritual substance with any bars compounded of 
matter. But if within the circuit of these walks, he of 
whom thou speakest should lurk, let him be concealed 
in what shape soever; I shall know before to-morrow 
morning. 

Thus promised Gabriel; and Uriel returned to his 
charge, upon that bright beam, whose point now 
raised bore him slope downward to the sun, that 
was now fallen beneath the Azores; (c) whither the 
prime orb incredibly swift had rolled thither diurnal, 

(c) Azores; Port. Span. i. e. The isles of hawks: because mul- 
titudes of those birds were found there, when the Portuguese 
first discovered them, A.D. 1449. These islands are nine in num- 
ber, which lie in the Atlantic or western oeean, over against 
Portugal: they are called also the Tereeras, from Tercera, i. 
e. t':r:>e: because it is the third, which is found in sailing* from 
Portugal, and the chiefest of them, i. e. the sun was now setting 
in the west. 

22 



170 PARADISE LOST. book iv, 

or this less voluble earth, by a shorter flight to the east, 
had left him there, adorning the clouds that attended 
him to the west with reflected purple and gold. Now^ 
came on the still evening, and the gray twilight had 
begun to cover all on earth with darkness; for the 
beasts were retired to their grassy beds, and the birds 
to their nests; all but the wakeful nightingale, she sung 
all night her sweet love song: now the firmament glow- 
ed with stars, the evening star that led on the rest shone 
brightest; until such time as the moon shone in clouded 
majesty, and unveiling her peerless light, cast her sil- 
ver rays through the night, of which she had the appa- 
rent dominion; when Adam thus addressed himself to 
Eve: 

Fair consort! the hour of night and all things now 
being retired to rest, teach us to seek like repose; since 
God hath set labour and rest to Man successively, as 
day and night, and the seasonable dew of sleep, now 
falling with its soft weight, inclines our eyes to slum- 
ber. Other creatures rove idle all the day long unem- 
ployed, and therefore need less rest; but Man hath his 
daily work of body or mind appointed, which declares 
his dignity, and that the regard of heaven is upon all 
his ways: while other animals range and rove at large, 
and God takes no account of their doings. To-mor- 
row before the break of day, or at the first approach 
of light, we must be up, and at oar pleasant labour, 
to clear yonder flowery arbours and green alleys, where 
we are used to walk at noon, which are overgrown so 
with branches, that they are almost too much for us, 
and require more hands than ours to lop their wanton 
growth: those blossoms also, and those gums that are 
dropped, and lie all strown about rough and unsightly, 
must be ridded away, if we think to tread with ease; 
mean time nature requires, and night calls us to rest. 



<jhap. in. PARADISE LOST. lyi 

To whom Eve, adorned with perfect beauty, repli- 
ed: My author and disposer! what thou biddest, I 
without argument obey; for so God has ordained; 
God is thy law T , but thou art mine; to know no more 
is the happy knowledge of a woman and her praise: 
when conversing with thee I forget all time, the sea- 
sons and their change, for all please alike: the breath 
of the morning is sweet, with, the charm of birds that 
sing at its earliest appearance; the sun is pleasant, when 
first he spreads his eastern beams upon this delightful 
land, on the herbs, trees, and fruits, and flowers shin- 
ing with dew; the fertile earth becomes fragrant after 
soft rains, and the coming of the grateful and mild even- 
ing is sweet; and then the silent night with her solemn 
bird, and this fair moon, and these the gems of heaven, 
the stars that are in her train; but neither the breath 
of the morning, the pleasant sun, the fertile earth, the 
mild evening, the silent night, nor moon, nor stars, are 
sWeet without thee. But wherefore do these shine all 
night long? and for whom is all this glorious sight, 
when sleep hath shut up all eyes? 

To whom our first ancestor replied: Accomplished 
Eve! daughter of God and of Man! these have their 
course to finish round the earth by to-morrow evening, 
and they set and rise, administering prepared light, in 
order from land to land, though to nations yet unpeo- 
pled; lest total darkness should regain its old posses- 
sion, and extinguish life and nature in all things; which 
these soft fires not only enlighten, but also foment and 
warm, temper and nourish, with a kindly heat of vari- 
ous influence; or else in part shed down their virtue 
upon all kinds that grow upon the earth, hereby made 
fitter to receive perfection from the sun's more powerful 
ray. These then, though not seen in the dead of night, 
do yet not shine in vain; nor let us think though there 
were no men, that heaven would want spectators, or 



172 PARADISE LOST. book iv. 

God want praise; for there are millions of spiritual 
creatures, that unseen walk the earth, both when we 
are awake and when we sleep; all these with never 
ceasing praise behold his works, both day and night: 
how often from the steep hill that echoes, or from the 
thickets, have we heard heavenly voices in the middle 
of the night, singing alone, or answering one another's 
song, singing their great Creator; often have we heard 
them in bands, while they keep watch, or take their 
nightly walk; when with heavenly touch of instru- 
ments joined in full harmony, their songs have divided 
the night, and lifted our thoughts up to heaven. 

Talking in this manner, and joined hand in hand, 
they passed on together to their happy bower: it was a 
place chosen by God himself, when he framed all 
things to the delightful use of Man: the roof was thick 
covered and shaded with laurel and myrtle, and what 
grew up higher were trees, whose leaves were sub- 
stantial and sweet smelling; on either side grew Acan- 
thus, (&) and bushy shrubs fenced up the green wall; 
every beautiful flower raised its full blown head in be- 
tween, iris of all hues, and roses, and jessamin, look- 
ing like Mosaic (e) work; under foot violets, and cro- 
cus, and hyacinth, richly beautified the ground, and 
coloured it finer than any stone of costliest emblem 
could do: no other creature durst enter here, neither 
beast, bird, insect, or worm, such awe did they stand 
in of Man; Pan nor Sylvaniis (/) were never feigned 

(d) Acanthus; Lat. Gr, i. e. a prickle or thorn: because many 
thorns grow about it. A tree or a shrub with a long and a 
large leaf turning in. 

(e) Mosaic; Fr. Ital. Lat. Gr. a term of arehit. A curious 
work of many little stones of different colours, inlaid or joined 
together upon a bottom of plaister of Paris, upon walls or floors, 
representing flowers of divers shapes, chequer work. 

(/) Sylvanus; Lat. Gr. i. e. woody: a god of the woods and 
groves among the old heathens. Pan, Faunus, and Silvanus 
are but the same deityj their feasts were called Lupercalia, 



chap. in. PARADISE LOST. 17g 

to have slept, nor nymph nor faun have haunted in a 
shady bower more sacred and retired: here in a close re- 
cess Eve, after being espoused to Adam, first decked her 
nuptial bed with flowers and garlands, and sweet smel- 
ling herbs; and the heavenly choir sung the marriage 
song, that day the friendly angel brought her to him, 
adorned with naked beauty more lovely than what is 
feigned of Pandora, (g) whom the gods were said to 
have endowed with all their gifts (and Oh too like in 
the sad event!) when to the unwise son of Japhet, (/i) 
being brought by Hermes, she ensnared mankind with 
her fair looks, to be avenged of Mm who had stole fire 
from heaven to animate a man. 

Tims being arrived at ? their shady lodge, both stood, 
and turned, and under the open sky adored that God 
that made the sky, and air, and earth, and heaven, 
which they beheld; the moon's resplendent globe, and 
the stars: thou also (they said) Oh omnipotent Maker, 
madest the night and the day, which we employed in our 

( g) Pandora; Lat. Gr. i. e. all gifts. The wife of Epime- 
theus; Pallas gave her wisdom; Venus, beauty; Mercury, elo- 
quence: and so every god and goddess gave her some perfec- 
tion. Jupiter sent her to Epimetheus with a box, which he 
rashly opened; and all diseases, evils and miseries flew out of 
it, aud infected mankind. She is described by Hesiod, L. 1. 60. 
Sfc. Eve is this woman, and the fall of man is couched under 
the fable, which the heathens had by a long tradition. 

(h) Japhet; Heb. i. e. persuaded. The poets call him Jape- 
tus; and the Tartars call him Japhis: he is said to be the son 
of Epimetheus, Lat. Gr. i. e. after wit: because he smarted for 
his curiosity, in opening the box. The brother of Prometheus, 
Lat. Gr. i. e. wit beforehand: forecast and wisdom. He was 
said to have put life and soul into a man, which he made of clay; 
to quicken which, he stole fire or soul from heaven. Jupiter, 
for his presumption, sent Pandora to plague the earth. These 
are memorials of the creation and fall of Adam, from Gen. ii. 
7, and oral tradition, couched in fables. 



174 PARADISE LOST. hook iv. 

appointed work have finished; in our mutual help hap- 
py, and happy in our mutual love, which is ordained 
hj thee to be the crown of all our bliss; and happy in 
this delightful place, too large for us, where thy abun- 
dance wants more to partake of it, and plenty falls un- 
cropt to the ground: but thou hast promised, that from 
us two shall proceed a race to fill the earth, who shall 
with us extol thy infinite goodness, both when we wake, 
and when as now we ask thy good gift of sleep. 

This they said unanimously; and observing no other 
ceremony, but pure adoration, which God likes best; 
they went with joined hands into the inmost bower, 
and not needing to put off these troublesome disguises 
which we now wear, they immediately lay down side 
by side: nor do I suppose that Adam turned away 
from his fair spouse; nor Eve refused the mysterious 
rites of connubial love; whatever some hypocrites may 
talk austerely of purity, and place, and innocence, de- 
faming that as an impure thing, which God has declar- 
ed pure, has commanded to some, and leaves free to 
all: our Maker bids us increase, and who bids us ab- 
stain? who, but our destroyer? the foe both of God and 
Man? Hail wedded love! great mystery! true source 
of human offspring! sole propriety in Paradise! where 
all things else are common; by thee it was that adul- 
terous Inst was driven out from men to range among 
the beasts, founded in reason, just, loyal, and pure; 
by thee first were known the dear relations, and all the 
endearments of father, brother, and son: far be it from 
me that I should call thee sin, or blameable, or think 
thee unbefitting the holiest places; thou perpetual foun- 
tain of domestic sweets! whose bed is undefiled, and 
pronounced chaste, present or past, as being so to 
saints, and patriarchs: here are love's true darts felt; 
here love's lamp is constantly lighted; here love reigns, 
plays and revels, not in the bought smiles of harlots. 



chap. iv. PARADISE LOST. I75 

without love, without joy, without endearment; mere 
casual fruition! not in the amours of courts, mixed 
dances, or wanton masquerades, or midnight balls, or 
serenades, which the lover sings in the cold night to 
his proud mistress, which deserves nothing from her 
but disdain. Instead of such music, these two were 
lulled to sleep by nightingales, clasped in one ano- 
ther's arms, and the flowery roof shed roses upon their 
naked limbs, to repair which the morning brought forth 
more. Blest pair! sleep on as yet, happiest if ye seek 
for no happier state, and limit your knowledge, so as to 
desire to know no more. 



CHAPTER IV. 

Gabriel appoints two angels to Adam's bower; who find Satan 
at the ear of Eve; they bring him to Gabriel; Satan's beha- 
viour thereon, and flight out of Paradise. 

Darkness and night was now spread over the 
garden of Eden, and the cherubim issuing forth at the 
accustomed hour to their night watches, stood armed 
in readiness for their duty; when Gabriel to the angel 
who was next him in power spoke thus: 

Uzziel, (i) draw half these off, and with strictest 
watch coast the south: with these other I shall wheel 
the north: our circuit meets full west. They parted 
like flame, half wheeling to the right-hand toward the 
spear, and half to the left-hand toward the shield. 
From these he called two subtle and strong spirits that 
stood near him, and gave them this charge: 

(i) Uzziel; Heb. i. e. the strength of God; one of the sup- 
posed guardians of Paradise. 



176 PARADISE LOST. book iv. 

lthuriel, (k) and Zephon, (I) with winged speed go 
through this garden, and leave no corner of Paradise 
unsearclied; but chiefly where those two fair creatures 
lodge, now perhaps laid asleep and apprehending no 
clanger. This evening is arrived an angel from the sun ? 
who tells of some infernal spirit bent towards Eden 
(who could have thought it possible?) escaped the bars 
of hell, no doubt come upon some bad errand: where- 
ver ye find such, seize him fast, and bring him hither. 
Saying this, he led on Ms radient files, dazzling the 
moon, directly to the bower in search after what they 
sought; there they found him sitting squat in the shape 
of a toad, close at the ear of Eve; trying by his devil- 
ish art, to reach the organs of her fancy, and with 
them forge, just as he pleased, illusions, phantasms, 
and dreams; or if breathing in venom, he might taint 
the animal spirits that rise from the pure blood, like 
gentle gales from rivers; and from thence at least raise 
distempered and discontented thoughts, vain hopes, 
vain aims, and inordinate desires, blown up with 
high conceits that engender pride. As Satan sat thus 
intent, lthuriel touched him lightly with his spear; up 
he starts, discovered and surprised; for no falshood 
can endure the touch of any thing of celestial nature, 
but of force it returns to its own likeness: as when a 
spark of fire lights upon a heap of gunpowder, laid rea- 
dy to store some magazine against an expected war, 
diffused with sudden blaze inflames the air; so in his 
own shape started up the fiend. Those two fair angels 

(k) lthuriel'; Heb. i. e. the light or searcher of God. Ano- 
ther of those supposed guardians. 

(I) Ze-phon; Heb. i. e. the sjiy or watch of God. Another of 
those guardians, to whom Gabriel gives these orders. Zephon, 
t}\& son of Gad, and father of the Zephonites, is mentionedj 
Num. xxvl. 15. But lthuriel and Zephon are scriptural names 
of angels, good or evil. 



chap. iv. PARADISE LOST. 177 

stepped back, half amazed so on a sudden to behold 
the king of hell; yet unmoved with fear soon accost- 
ed him: 

Which of those rebel spirits condemned to hell art 
thou? that hast escaped thy prison; and why didst thou 
sit here transformed, like an enemy in wait, and watch- 
ing at the head of those here that sleep? 

Do not ve then know? answered Satan, filled with 
scorn, me do ye not know? ye knew me once, no com- 
panion for you, sitting there where you durst not 
approach: not to know me, proves that you yourselves 
are unknown, some of the low est of your throng; and 
if you do know, what do you ask for, and begin your 
business in an idle and superfluous speech, likely to 
end as much in vain? 

To whom Zephon made this reply, answering scorn 
with scorn: think not, revolted spirit, that thy bright- 
ness is not diminished, or to be known by the same 
shape as when thoo stoodest in heaven, pure and up- 
right: no; that glory when thou wast no longer good 
departed from thee; and now thou resemblest thy sin 
and place of doom, obscure and foul. But come, for 
be assured thou shalt give an account to him who sent 
us; whose charge is, to keep this place inviolable, and 
these two from harm. 

Thus spoke the cherub: and his grave rebuke, se- 
verely spoke in youthful beauty, added invincible 
grace: the devil stood abashed, and felt how awful 
goodness is, and saw virtue how lovely she was; he 
saw, and regretted his own loss of it, but chiefly to find 
it observed here, that his lustre was visibly impaired; 
yet he seemed undaunted: said he, if I must contend, 
best to contend with the best; the sender, and not the 
sent; or all at once; more glory will be won then, or 
less lost. Thy fear, said bold Zephon, will save us 

23 



178 PARADISE LOST. book if. 

the trial what the least of us can do single against thee, 
wicked and thence weak. 

Satan made no reply, but quite overcome with rage- 
went haughtily on, like a proud steed under the rein, 
champing his iron curb: he held it vain to fly, or to 
resist; for an awe from above had quelled his heart, 
else he was not dismayed. Now they drew nigh to 
the western point, where those half-rounding guards 
just met, and stood closing in a joined squadron, wait- 
ing the next command; to whom Gabriel their chie^ 
from the front called loudly: friends! I hear the nim- 
ble tread of feet hastening this way; and now by 
glimpse through the shade can discern Ithuriel and 
Zephon, and with them there comes a third of regal 
port, bat of a faded brightness, who by his gate and 
his tierce demeanor seems to me to be the prince of 
hell; not likely to depart hence without a contest: 
stand firm, for defiance and opposition are in his looks. 

He scarcely had ended, when Ithuriel and Zephon 
approached, and briefly related whom they had brought, 
where they had found him, how he was busied, and 
what form and posture he was couched in; to whom, 
looking sternly at him Gabriel spake: Satan, why hast 
thou broke the bounds prescribed thee and thy trans- 
gressions? and why hast thou disturbed the charge of 
others, who do not approve to transgress by thy exam- 
ple; but have a power and a right to question, why 
thou hast boldly entered on this place, employed as it 
seems to violate sleep, and those whose dwelling God 
has settled here in happiness? 

To whom Satan, with a contemptuous look made 
answer: Gabriel! in heaven thou hadst the estimation 
of being wise, and such indeed I thought thee, but thy 
asking this question puts me in doubt. Does there live 
any body who loves his pain? or who would not, if he 






chap. iv. PARADISE LOST.. 1^9 

could find a way, break loose from hell, though he was 
doomed thither? thou thyself wouldst, I make no doubt, 
and boldly wouldst venture to whatever place thou 
couklst, to get farthest from pain; where thou mightest 
hope to change torment for ease, and soonest recom- 
pense sorrow with delight; which is what I sought 
in this place: this to thee is no reason, because thou 
knowest nothing but good, and hast not tried evil. 
Wilt thou object his will, who bound us? let him bar 
his iron gates surer, if he intends we shall stay in that 
dark durance! thus much was asked me. The rest is 
true; they did find me where they say, but that im- 
plies neither harm nor violence. 

Thus he spoke in scorn: the warlike angel was mov- 
ed, and half smiling, thus replied disdainfully: What 
loss there is in heaven for one to judge of wisdom, 
vsince Satan fell, whose folly overthrew him! and now 
returns him escaped from his prison, very gravely in 
doubt, whether he should hold them wise or not, who 
ask what boldness brought him hither from his bounds 
prescribed in hell, without leave granted hini: how- 
ever, he judges it wise to fly from pain, and to escape 
his punishment; so judge thou still, presumptuous re- 
bel, until that wrath, which thou incurrest by flying, 
meet thy flight, and with sevenfold vengeance scourge 
that wisdom back to hell again; which yet taught thee 
no better, that could not teach thee that no pain can 
equal infinite anger provoked. But wherefore art thou 
alone? wherefore did not all hell come with thee, broke 
loose? is pain to them less pain, or less to be fled? or 
art thou less hardy to endure than they? a courageous 
chief! the very first in flight from pain! hadst thou al- 
leged this cause to thy deserted host, surely thou hadst 
not come away the sole fugitive. 

To which, frowning sternly, the fiend answered: In- 
sulting angel, not that I can endure less, or shrink from 



180 PARADISE LOST. book iv. 

pain; thou knowest well I stood thy fiercest, when the 
blasting vollied thunder made all speed in the battle 
to thy assistance, and seconded thy spear, which else 
was not dreaded; but still thy words, as they were be- 
fore, are at random, and argue thy want of experience, 
as to what behoves a faithful leader (from hard trials 
and ill successes past) not to hazard all, through ways 
of dang?r which he had never tried; therefore 1 alone 
undertook first to pass over the desolate abyss, and spy 
out this new created world, whereof fame is not silent 
in hell; hoping to find here a better abode, and settle 
here upon earth, or else in the air, my afflicted powers; 
though against our taking possession, we try once 
more what thou and thy gay legions can do, whose ea- 
sier business is, to serve their Lord with songs and 
practise distant cringes, not to fight. 

To whom the warrior angel made speedy reply: To 
say, and then immediately to unsay, pretending first 
to be wise and to fly pain, next professing to be a spy, 
argues no leader, but a traced liar, Satan! and couldst 
thou add faithful? Oh profanation of the sacred name 
of faithfulness! faithful to whom! to thy rebellious crew, 
an army of devils? a fit body to such a head! was this 
your discipline, your faith engaged, and your military 
obedience, to dissolve allegiance to the acknowledged 
supreme power? and thou, sly hypocrite, who now 
would st seem patron of liberty, who once fawned and 
cringed more than thou, and servilely adored the aw r - 
ful king of heaven? wherefore? but in hopes to dispos- 
sess him, and reign thyself? but mark what I pro- 
nounce thee now: avaunt! fly back again from whence 
thou art fled! for if from this hour thou darest but to 
appear within these hallowed limits, I will drag thee 
back chained to the infernal pit, and seal thee so, that 
thou shalt not henceforth scorn the easy gates of hell, 
as barred too slightly, 



chap. iv. PARADISE LOST. 181 

So lie threatened; but Satan heeded no threats, but 
growing still more enraged, replied: Proud limitary 
cherub! when I am thy captive, then begin to talk 
about chains, but until then expect to feel a far hea- 
vier load from my powerful arm; though the King 
of heaven ride upon thy wings, and thou with thy fel- 
low slaves, used to the yoke, drawest his triumphal 
car, in progress through the star-paved road of heaven. 

While he spoke thus, the angelical squadron turned 
fiery red, sharpening their phalanx into half moons, and 
began to enclose him round with presented spears; as 
thick as ears of corn, ripe for the harvest bend to the 
wind; on the other side, Satan being alarmed and col- 
lecting all his might, stood fixed and enlarged like 
mount Tenerif, (?n) or Atlas: his stature reached the 
sky, and on his crest sat horror for a plume; nor did he 
want in his grasp what seemed both spear and shield. 
Now very dreadful deeds might have ensued, not only 
Paradise, had gone to wreck in this commotion, but 
perhaps the starry cope of heaven, all the elements had 
been disturbed and torn with the violence of this great 
conflict had not God to prevent such horrid fray, hung 
forth his golden scales in heaven, which are yet seen 

(m) Teneriffe, Tenerif, or Tenerife; Portug. i. e. holding up 
on high. It is the chief of the Canary islands, which are seven 
in number, in the western ocean, and about thirty leagues from 
the continent. It is over against Morocco in Africa, about 48 
Spanish leagues round. Ptolomy reckoned the longitude from 
them: because the ancients esteemed them the remotest part of 
the ocean; and some modern geopraphers follow him still. The 
peak of Teneriffe is one of the highest mountains upon our 
globe; a mass of rocks heaped confusedly together, like a rough 
pyramid; computed to be between three or at most four miles 
perpendicular above the sea; and about fifteen miles to them 
that ascend it. It may be seen 120 English miles off at sea, 
in clear weather. There is a volcano on the top of it, and it 
is also covered with snow; therefore some call it Nivaria; i. e* 
a snowy rock. 



183 



PARADISE LOST. 



BOOK IV. 



between Astrea (n) and the sign Scorpio (wherein he 
first weighed all things created, the pendulous round 
earth, and counterpoised it with ballanced air, and now 
weighs in them all events of battles, and realms) in 
these he put two weights, one of them to shew the con- 
sequence of Satan's retreating, and the other of his 
fighting; the latter scale flew up quick and struck the 
beam; Gabriel seeing thus spoke to the fiend . 

Satan! I know thy strength, and thou too, knowest 
mine, neither of them our own, but both given us: 
what folly is it for us then to boast what arms can do, 
since thine can do as much as heaven permits, and 
mine can do no more, though my strength be doubled 
now to trample thee: for a proof look up in yonder 
celestial sign where thou art weighed, and shewn 
how light and weak thou art, if thou slioulclest resist. — 
The fiend looked up, and saw and kuew his scale 
mounted aloft; nor did he stay, but lied away murmur- 
ing, and with him likewise tied the shade of the night. 

(n) Jlstrea; Lat. L e. a star. The daughter of Jupiter, and 
Themis, and goddess of justice. In the golden age, or state of* 
innocency, she lived among men; but in the iron age, or after 
the fall, she deserted the earth, last of all the gods; beeause of 
of the wickedness of men, and flew up to heaven, where she be- 
came the sign Virgo, next to Libra, i. e. a scale. Justice's ba- 
lance, another of the twelve signs. 



THE FIFTH BOOK 



PARADISE LOST. 



THE ARGUMENT. 



The morning approaching Eve relates to Adam her trouble- 
some dream; he does not like it, yet comforts her; they come 
forth to their day labour: their morning hymn at the door of 
the bower. God to render Man inexcusable, sends Raphael 
to admonish him of his obedience, of his free estate, of his 
enemy near at hand; who he is; and why his enemy, and 
whatever else may avail Adam to know. Raphael comes 
down to Paradise; his appearance described, his coming dis- 
cerned by Adam afar off, sitting at the door of his bower; he 
goes out to meet him, brings him to his lodge, entertains him 
with the choicest fruits of Paradise got together by Eve; 
their discourse at table: Raphael performs his message, and 
puts Adam in mind of his state, and of his enemy. Raphael 
at the request of Adam, relates who his great enemy is, and 
how he came to be so, beginning from his first revolt in hea- 
ven, and the occasion thereof; how he drew his legions after 
him to the parts of the north, and therein incited them to re- 
bel with him; persuading all, but only Abdiel, a seraph, who 
in his argument dissuades and opposes him, then forsakes him. 



CHAPTER I. 

Eve relates to Adam her dream; they come forth to their day- 
labour: the morning hymn. 

Now the morning advancing with red streaks in 
the east, covered the earth with shining drops of dew, 
when Adam awaked, being so accustomed; for his 
sleep was light, bred from pure digestion and tempe- 
rate pleasing fumes, which the bare sound of leaves, 
and running streams and the shrill morning song of 
birds on every bough lightly dispersed: his wonder 
was so much the more to find Eve not yet awake; with 
her hair discomposed and her cheeks glowing, as 
through unquiet sleep: he on his side half raised and 
leaning, hung over her enamoured with looks of cor- 
dial love, and beheld beauty, which whether asleep or 
awake cast forth peculiar graces: then with voice as 
mild as when the gentle winds breathe on the flowers, 
softly touching her hand, whispered thus: Awake! my 
fairest! my spouse! my last found good! heaven's last, 
best gift! my ever new delight! awake! for now the 
morning shines, and the fresh field calls for us; we 
lose the prime to observe how our tender plants spring, 
how the citron grove blows, what the balm tree and 
the myrrh drop, how nature paints her colour, and how 
the bee sits upon the flowers extracting honey. Such 
whispering awaked her; but with startled eyes, turn- 
ed upon Adam; to whom (embracing him) she spoke 
thus: 

2% 



186 PARADISE LOST. book v. 

O thou! in whom alone my thoughts find any repose, 
my perfection and my glory! gladly I see thy face and 
the morning returned; for I this night have dreamed, 
if indeed it was a dream (for such a night until this I 
never passed before) not as I am often used about thee, 
the work of the past day, or that next designed for the 
morrow; but I have dreamed of offence and trouble, 
which until this irksome night my mind never knew. 
Methought that one close at my ear with a gentle 
voice called me to Avalk, 1 thought it was thine: it said, 
Eve, why dost thou sleep? now is the pleasant, cool 
and silent time, only where silence yields to the night- 
ingale, that now awake tunes in the sweetest notes, his 
love laboured sons;: now the full moon reigns, and with 
a pleasanter light sets off the face of things, but all in 
vain if none regard it: heaven wakes with all his eyes, 
and who is it to behold but thee, who art the desire of 
nature? in whose sight all tilings have joy, attracted 
by thy beauty, still to gaze with ravishment. I arose 
thinking it to be thy call, but could not find thee, to 
which end I then directed my walk; and alone, me- 
thought, I passed on through ways that brought me 
on a sudden to the forbidden tree of knowledge. 
It seemed very fair, much fairer to my fancy than it 
did by day; and as I looked on it with wonder, there 
stood by the side of it, one shaped and winged, like 
those that come from heaven, which we often see; his 
dewy locks dropped sweetness; and he also gazed on 
that tree: and fair plant, said he, overcharged with 
fruit! does nobody vouchsafe to ease thy load, and 
taste thy sweetness? neither God nor Man? is know- 
ledge so much despised? or is it envy? or what reserve 
is it that forbids to taste of it? let who will forbid it, 
none shall longer withhold from me thy offered good: 
to what end else art thou set here? Having said this, 
he made no further pause, but with adventurous arm 






chap. i. PARADISE LOST. I87 

he plucked off the fruit, aud tasted it: a damp horror 
ehilled me, at sucli bold words, confirmed with such a 
bold deed. But he overjoyed, exclaimed thus: Oh di- 
vine fruit! sweet of thyself, but thus cropped much 
more sweet; forbidden here it would seem as only fit 
for gods, and yet art able to make gods of men: and 
why not make gods of men, since good the more it is 
communicated, grows more abundantly; the author at 
the same time not impaired, but the more honoured? 
here thou happy creature! fair angelical Eve! do thou 
partake also; for though thou art happy, thou mayest 
still be happier, though thou canst not be worthier: 
then taste this, and henceforth be amongst the gods, 
thyself a goddess; not confined to the earth, but as we 
are, sometimes in the air, sometimes ascend up to hea- 
ven (which is thine by merit) and see there what life 
the gods live, and such a one live thou. Saying this, 
he drew nigh to me, and held even to my very mouth, 
part of that same fruit which lie had gathered: the 
pleasant savoury smell so quickened my appetite, that, 
methought, I could not forbear tasting: forthwith I flew 
with him up to the clouds, and beheld the earth stretch- 
ed out immeasurably a wide and various prospect far 
underneath me: while I was wondering at my flight 
and my change to this high exaltation; on a sudden 
my guide was gone, and I, methought, sunk down, and 
fell asleep: but Oh, how glad I was when I waked to 
find this nothing but a dream! Thus Eve related what 
had passed in her sleep in the night, and Adam, with 
much sadness made this answer. 

Thou best image of myself! and my dearer half! 
the trouble of thy thoughts this night in sleep, equally 
affects me; nor can I by any means like this strange 
dream, which I fear to proceed from evil. Yet whence 
evil? none can harbour in thee, for thou wert created 
pure. But know, that there are many lesser faculties in 



188 PARADISE LOST. book v. 

the soul, which are subordinate to reason: the chief of 
these is fancy; she forms imaginations, and airy shapes 
of all the external things, which the live senses repre- 
sent, which (reason either joining or disjoining) frame 
all what we affirm, or what we deny, and call our know- 
ledge or opinion, and when nature rests, then reason 
retires into her private cell, and rests also. Mimic fan- 
cy, in her absence often wakes to imitate her; but mis- 
joining shapes generally produces wild work and mostly 
in dreams; ill-matching of words and deeds long since 
past, or lately done. Methinks I find some such 
resemblances of our talk last evening, in this thy dream, 
but with very strange addition: yet be not sad; into the 
mind of either God or Man evil may come, and go, and 
if unapproved of, leave no spot or blame behind it: which 
occasions me to hope, that what thou didst abhor to do 
in a dream asleep, thou never wilt consent to do waking. 
Then do not be disheartened, nor let there be a cloud 
upon that face, that used to be more cheerful and 
more serene, tha^ when the fair morning first opens on 
the world: and let us rise to our fresh employments 
among the groves, and among the fountains and flow r - 
ers, that now open their choicest smells, which have 
been shut up from the night, and kept in store for thee. 

So Adam endeavoured to cheer his fair spouse, and 
shewa,s cheered; but silently from either eye, she let fall 
a gentle tear, and wiped them with her hair: two other 
precious tears that stood ready to drop Adam kissed 
away, looking on them as gracious signs of sweet re- 
morse, and a pious awe that was afraid to have offended. 

So all was cleared, and they hastened forth to the 
field: but first from under the shady roof of the arbour, 
as soon as they where come forth to the open sight of day 
and the sun (who scarce risen and yet hovering on the 
ocean's brim, shot parallel his dewy rays to the earth, 
discovering in a wide landscape all the east of Paradise, 



chap. i. PARADISE LOST. 1S9 

and the happy plains of Eden) they bowed lowly in 
adoration, and begun their prayers, duly offered every 
morning in various style; for neither did they want 
various style nor holy rapture, to praise their Maker 
in proper strains, either pronounced or sung unpreme- 
ditated; such ready eloquence flowed from their lips, 
in prose or harmonious verse, too tuneable to want ei- 
ther lute or harp to add more sweetness to them; and 
they began thus: 

Almighty! parent of good! these glorious works are 
thine, and thine this universal frame, so wonderous 
beautiful! how much more wonderful art thou! un- 
speakable! who sittest above the heavens, to us invisi- 
ble, or seen dimly in these thy lowest works: yet these 
declare thy goodness to be beyond thought, and thy 
power to be divine. Speak ye sons of light! ye an- 
gels! how wonderous the Creator is, for ye behold him, 
and with songs and symphonies, day witnout night, 
sing round about his throne rejoicing in choir; this do ye 
in heaven! on earth join all ye creatures! to exalt and 
praise him, first and last and for ever without end! 
thou fairest of stars the last in the train of night! (if 
more properly thou belong not to the dawn) the sure 
pledge of day, that beautifiest the smiling morning with 
thy bright circle! praise him in thy sphere, while day 
arises! thou sun! both soul and eye of this great world, 
acknowledge him thy greater; in thy eternal course 
sound his praise! both when thou climbest and when 
thou hast reached high noon, and when thou settest. 
And thou, O moon! and ye five other wandering fires! 
that move in a manner not to be comprehended, yet 
not without harmony, resound his praise who out of 
darkness called forth light. Air! and ye other ele- 
ments! the first birth of nature, that runs a perpetual 
circle taking various and numberless forms, mixing 
with and nourishing all things; let your ceaseless 



190 PARADISE LOST. book y. 

change still vary new praise to our great Maker! ye 
mists and exhalations! that now rise dusky or gray, 
from the hills or streaming lakes (till such times as the 
sun-beams paint ye like gold) rise ye, in honour to the 
world's great Author! whether rising to deck the un- 
coloured sky with clouds, or falling to wet the earth 
with showers of rain, still advance ye his praise! 
breathe soft, or loud his praise, ye winds! that blow 
from four quarters! and ye pine trees wave your tops! 
and every plant, in sign of worship wave! ye foun- 
tains! and ye murmuring streams! tune his praise. 
Join voices, all ye living souls! ye birds! that singing 
ascend up towards heaven's gate, upon your wings and 
in your notes bear his praise. Ye fishes that swim in 
the waters? and ye creatures that walk the earth, tread- 
ing or lowly creeping! witness if I am silent morning 
or evening, to hill, to valley, to fountain or fresh shade 
made vocal by my song, and taught his praise! Hail, uni- 
versal Lord! be thou still so bounteous to give us only 
good; and if the night hath gathered any thing of evil, 
do thou disperse it; even as the morning light now 
dispels the darkness. 

So they prayed innocently, and to their thoughts 
soon recovered firm peace and usual calmness, on they 
hasted to their morning's rural work, among sweet 
dews and flowers or where any rows of fruit trees 
reached too far their overgrown boughs, and wanted 
hands to check them from fruitless embraces, or else 
they led the vine to wed the elm, who twining her 
marriageable arms about him brings with her, her dow- 
er, the rich clustres of grapes to adorn his barren 
leaves. 



chap, ii. PARADISE LOST. 191 



CHAPTER II. 

Raphael is sent to admonish Man of his obedience, comes down 
to Paradise; his appearance described: Adam discerns his 
coming; goes to meet him, and brings him to his bower; where 
Raphael performs his message. 

The high King of heaven with pity beheld them 
thus employed, and called to him Raphael, (a) the so- 
ciable spirit, that condescended to travel with Tobias, 
and assisted him in his marriage. 

Raphael! said he, thou nearest what a stir Satan 
(escaped from hell to earth through the darksome gulf) 
hath raised in Paradise; how this night he hath dis- 
turbed the human pair, and how he designs in them at 
once to bring on the ruin of all mankind: therefore go, 
and half this day converse with Adam, as one friend 
with another, in what bower or shade thou mayest find 
him, retired from the heat of the noon, to give some 
respite to his day labour with repast or with repose; 
and bring on such discourse as may advise him of the 
happy state he is in, happiness in his power, left to 
his own free will; his will, though free yet mutable: 
thence take occasion to warn him, to beware he swerve 
not, by imagining himself too secure: withal, tell him 
his danger, and from whom; what enemy lately fallen 
himself from heaven, is now contriving the fall of 
others from a like state of happiness: is this to be done 
by violence? no; for that shall be withstood; but by 
deceit and lies: let him know this, lest transgressing 
wilfully he should pretend surprisal, and that he was 
unadmonished and unf ore warned. 

(ft) Raphael; Heb. i. e. the remedy or physic of God. The 
name of an archangel, not mentioned in sacred scripture, onlv 
in Tob. ch. iii. 17. 4. viii. 9. 5. 15, 



192 PARADISE LOST. book v; 

So spoke the eternal Father, and so fulfilled all jus- 
tice: nor did the angel make any delay after he had 
received his charge; but from among thousands of 
bright and holy angels, where he stood veiled with his 
beautiful wings, springing up lightly, he flew through 
the midst of heaven; the choirs of the angels parting 
on each hand gave way to his speed, until he arrived 
at the gate of heaven, which opened of its own accord, 
turning on golden lunges, as God the sovereign archi- 
tect had by divine workmanship framed it. From 
hence no star or cloud interposing to obstruct his sight, 
he saw (not unlike to the other shining globes, though 
it appeared to be very small) the earth, and the gar- 
den of God, with cedars growing in it, above all hills: 
as when by night through a telescope, imagined lands 
and regions are observed in the moon, or a pilot from 
amidst the Cyclades, (b) see Delos (c) or Samos (d) 

(6) Cyclades; Lat. Gr. i. e. circles, fifty -three islands lying 
in a circle, round about Delos, in the Archipelago. 

(c) Delos; Lat. from the Gr. i. e. manifest or appearing: be- 
cause (as the fable goes) it lay under water or floated about, for 
a long time, till Neptune at the command of Jupiter, fixed it y 
that Latona might lie in of Apollo and Diana there. Rather 
from Daal, Heb. i. e. fear: because they were worshipped in 
this island, and some remains of the magnificent temple of 
Apollo, as marble pillars, are visible there. And for that rea- 
son it was esteemed so sacred, that the inhabitants would not 
suffer a dog, or any sick person to live in it, or any dead to be 
buried therein; whom they sent to a neighbouring island, ealled 
Rhene. But the true reason of this name is this, because it ap- 
pears soonest of any to the sailors. The common treasures of 
Greece were deposited in it, for that reason. It was first called 
Ortygia, Gr. i. e. a quail; because these birds abounded in that is 
land. The island is small, not above five or six miles in compass; 
twice as long as broad, low, rocky, barren, now desolate, and 
called Zdeli: and esteemed the first and chief of the Cyclades; 

{d) Samos; Lat. Gr. i. e. high; because it is upon a high and 
lofty ground; another of these isles over against Ephesus; about 



chap. ir. PARADISE LOST. 193 

first appearing to be only a cloudy spot. He speeds 
down thither direct in flight, and through the sky Hies 
between the stars: now with steady wing upon the po- 
lar winds, (e) then with his wings fans the yielding 
air; until arriving where towering eagles could soar as 
high, to all the fowls he seems a phoenix, (./) gazed 
on by all as that bird, when he fries to burn himself 
to death in the fire of the sun, as far as the ^Egyptian 
Thebes, (g) At once he lights upon the eastern cliff 
of Paradise, and returns to the shape he had, when 
God gave him the charge, a winged seraph: he wore 
six wings to shade his divine lineaments; the pair that 
clad each broad shoulder came mantling with regal 
ornament over his breast: the middle pair girded his 
waist like a girdle of stars, and covered round his loins 
and ■ highs with golden feathers, and colours that were 
dipped in heaven; the third pair shadowed his feet 
with sky-coloured feathers, of heavenly beauty: he 

because Apollo and Diana were chiefly adored, and had a fa- 
mous oracle in it. The Turks possess it, and the Venetians 
reduced it, A.D. 1674. 

90 miles from Jerusalem. It is rendered famous for being the 
birthplace of the great philosopher Pythagoras, about A.M. 
3500. 

(e) Polar winds, i. e. the winds that blow from the north and 
south poles. 

(/) Phoenix; Lat. from the Gr. i. e. red$ crimson coloured, 
A very rare bird, of a purple colour, like an Eagle. They say 
it breeds in Arabia, liveth 300, others say 500, some 660, and 
others 1469 years; that it burns itself to death in a nest of sweet 
spices, about Thebes in Egypt; out of these ashes another 
springeth. It is ail emblem of the resurrection of the dead; 
and the fathers urged it for a proof thereof, against the hea- 
thens, who believed it real; but most think it is a fable. 

(g) Tliebes; several cities are called so; this was in Egypt, 
called also Heliopolis, Gr. i. e. the city of the sun: and the coun- 
try about it, Thebais, now Theves. 



194 



PARADISE LOST. 



BOOK V. 



stood like him the poets feign to be the son of Maia, (h) 
and shook his plumes so that heavenly fragrance filled 
the wide circuit. He was soon known to all the hands 
of angels, who were guarding under watch, and they 
all rose up as he past, in honour to his state and high 
message; for upon such they guessed him to be bound: 
he went by their glittering tents, and now was come 
into Paradise, through groves of myrrh, sweet flowers, 
cassia, (i) spikenard, (k) and balm, a wilderness of 
sweets; for nature wantoned here as in her youth, and 
played virgin fancies at pleasure, pouring forth sweets 
in great abundance, wild above rule and above art, and 
full of every thing that could bring happiness. Adam 
discerned him coming onward through the forest of 
spices, as he sat at the door of his cool bower; while 
now the meridian sun shot his hot rays directly down- 
ward, to warm the inmost bowels of the earth (Avith 
more warmth than was necessary for Man) and Eve 
within at the accustomed hour prepared savoury fruits 
for dinner, of taste to please a true appetite, and not 
give a disrelish to draughts between, taken from the 
soft stream, or pressed from berries or grapes; to whom 
Adam called thus: 

(/i) Mala; Lai. Gr. i. e. a nurse. The daughter of Atlas, 
of whom Jupiter begot Mercury. 

(£) Cassia; Lat. Gr. Heb. Retsioth, i. e. a scraping. A sweet 
smelling shrub in Arabia, Egypt, <§*c. for when the bark of it 
is scraped, it sends out a most fragrant smell, like cinnamon. 
There are nine species of it. About Alexandria and in the West 
Indies it grows to be a very large tree. 

(k) Spikenard; Heb. i. e. sweet ointments; another sweet 
smelling shrub, growing in Arabia, Syria, and India, called nar- 
dos by the Greeks, and spikenard 'by us. See Cant. i. ±2. Mark 
xiv. 3. John xii. 3. With oil made of this and other sweet 
smelling herbs, the ancients anointed themselves and their 
guests, whilst they sat at table, Psalm xxiii. 5. " Thou prepar- 
" est a table before me, in the presence of mine enemies: thou 
" anointest my head with oil, fay-cup runneth over." 



chap, ii. PARADISE LOST. 1Q5 

Eve, hasten hither, and behold what glorious shape 
worthy thy sight conies this way, moving eastward 
among those trees, and seems another morning risen 
at noon day; perhaps he brings to us some great mes- 
sage from heaven, and will to-day vouchsafe to be our 
guest; but do thou go with speed, and bring forth what 
thy stores contain, and pour forth abundance, fit to 
receive and honour our heavenly stranger; we may 
well afford our givers their own gifts, and largely be- 
stow what is largely bestowed on us, where nature 
multiplies her plentiful growth, and by disburdening 
herself, grows the more fruitful, which may serve for 
instruction to us not to spare. 

To whom Eve replied; Adam, whom God made 
from the earth, and breathed life into! a small store 
will serve, where abundance in all seasons hangs ripe 
for use on the stalk, except what by frugal keeping 
gains more firmness and matureness, making it more 
nourishing and consuming superfluous moisture: but I 
will hasten, and from every tree and plant, and juici- 
est ground, will pluck such choice fruit to entertain 
our guest the angel, as, when he beholds, he shall con- 
fess that God hath dispensed his bounties here on 
earth, even as he has in heaven. 

Saying this, with busy looks and in haste she turns 
away, intent upon hospitable thoughts, what fruits to 
choose that were most delicate; and in what order to 
contrive not to mix tastes, disagreeable to one another, 
and not elegant; but bring taste after taste, changing 
them so as they may still please. She stirs about, and 
gathers from each tender stalk whatever the fruitful 
earth yields, either in east or west India, or the mid- 
dle shore in Pontus, (I) or the Punic (in) coast, or 

(I) Pontus; Lat. Gr. i. e. the sea. It is called the Euxine 
sea, the Black sea, Mare Maggiore (by the Italians, i. e. the 
greater sea, through ignorance) and by other names. Pontus is 



106 PARADISE LOST. book v. 

where Alcinous (%) reigned; a large tribute of fruit of 
all kinds, in rough coat, smooth rind, or bearded husk, 
or shell, and heaps them upon the board with an un- 
sparing hand: for drink she squeezes grapes, and 
many sorts of berries, and makes new wine; though 
new, yet not offensive: and pressing of sweet kernels, 
prepares creams of an agreeable taste; nor did she 
want pure and fit vessels to hold such liquors: she then 
strews the ground with roses, and sweet odours from the 
shrubs: mean while our first great father walks forth to 
meet his godlike guest, accompanied by no other train 
than his own complete perfections; all his state was in 
himself; much more solemn than the tedious pomp 
that waits oil princes, when their rich and long reti- 
nue of led horses, and grooms whose habits shine with 

a small sea in Lesser Asia, upon the north-east side of Constan- 
tinople, runneth into the White sea, and from thence into the 
Mediterranean sea. A fine country about it is also called Pontus, 
Acts ii. 9. 1 Pet. i. 1. The ancient Scythians or Tartars bor- 
dered upon it. Pontus was made a kingdom by Darius the son 
of Hystaspes, A.M. 3490, in favour of Artaba^us, a son of one 
of the lords of Persia, who conspired against the Magi, who 
had usurped that throne. After him six of the name of Mi~ 
thridates, and other kings reigned there. Ovid was banished 
thither by Augustus; and there he died, after ten year's confine- 
ment to a cold climate and barbarous inhabitants, where he 
wrote his Tristia. 

(m) Punic, PKwnicwn, q. Penic from the Pceni or Bene-Jlnak. 
Heb. i. e. the sons of Anak, a famous giant, Numb. xiii. 22. 28. 
The old inhabitants of Canaan, in the days of Moses. 

(n) Mcinousj Lat. Qr. i. e. magnanimous. An ancient king 
of Corcyra (now Corfu) in the mouth of the gulf of Venice; 
who had fair orchards, it being an apple country. The poets, 
in high commendation of them, feigned they were golden apples, 
which Homer took from the garden and apples of Paradise. The 
latter poets had this from him, and he from all antiquity. He 
entertained Ulysses, when he was cast upon his island, mag- 
nificently. 



cuap. ii. PARADISE LOST. I97 

gold, dazzles and sets all the crowd a gazing. Adam 
coming nearer to the angel, though he was not awed, 
yet approaching with submission and meek reverence, 
and bowing low, as to a superior nature, spoke thus: 

Native of heaven (for no other place can contain so 
glorious a shape) since by descending down from the 
thrones above, thou hast been pleased to leave those 
places, and honour these with thy presence, vouchsafe 
to remain a while with us in yonder shady bower, as 
being as yet but two, who by the gift of (rod possess 
this spacious ground; please there to rest and taste the 
choicest fruit the garden bears, until this noon heat be 
over, and the sun in his decline grow more cool. 

To whom the angel Raphael gave this mild answer. 
Adam! therefore I came; nor art thou created such, 
or dwellest in such a place, as may not often invite 
even the spirits of heaven to visit thee: lead on, where 
thy bower overshades, for all the hours, until the even- 
ing arise, I have liberty to stay with thee. — So they 
came to the sylvan lodge, that looked like the arbour of 
Pomona, ornamented with flowers, and filled with va- 
riety of fragrance; but Eve without ornament, except 
what was in herself, stood to entertain her guest from 
heaven; (more lovely than any wood nymph, or the 
fairest of the three feigned goddesses, (0) that contend- 
ed for the golden prize upon mount Ida) she needed 
no veil, for she w r as virtue proof; no impure thought 
altered her cheek. On whom the angel bestowed the 
holy salutation, used long after to the blessed virgin 

(0) Three goddesses; Juno, Pallas, and Venus, who strove for 
the golden apple, with this motto, Let it be given to the fairest. 
They chose Paris for their umpire, and promised him great re- 
wards to bring him over to their interest. Venus promised him 
Helena the fairest woman in the world, Sfc. He gave it and 
the pre-eminence of beauty to her, which was the original cause 
of the destruction of Troy, himself and his family. 



198 PARADISE LOST. book v. 

Mary, (p) who was the second Eve. " Hail! mother 
of mankind! whose fruitful womb shall hereafter fill 
the world, more numerous with sons than the trees of 
God have heaped this table with these various fruits." 
— Their table was raised with turfs of grass, and had 
round it seats of moss; and on the top of it, from side 
to side, was piled all the fruits of autumn, though 
spring and autumn were here at the same time. They 
held discourse a while before they eat, when thus 
Adam began to speak: 

Heavenly stranger! be pleased to taste these boun- 
ties, which he who nourishes us (and from whom all 
perfect good comes without measure to us, for delight 
and food) hath caused the earth to yield, perhaps it 
may not be proper food for spiritual nature; however, 
this I know, that it is only one celestial Father that 
gives to all. To whom the angel replied: Therefore 
what he (whose praise be for ever sung!) gives to man 
in part spiritual, may not be found disagreeable 
food for purest spirits; and these pure intelligential 
substances require some sort of food, as well as doth 
your rational: and both contain within them every low- 
er faculty of sense, by which they hear, see, smell, touch 
and taste; and tasting, concoct, digest, and turn corpo- 
real to incorporeal: for know thou, that whatever was 
created, wants to be sustained and fed; of the elements 
the grosser feeds the purer, the earth feeds the sea, the 
earth and sea feed the air, the air feed those etherial 

(p) Marl, or Mary; Heb. Miriam, Lat. and Gr. Maria, i. e. 
bitter, or very sad, Miriam the sister of Moses, was the first 
of that name; because she was born in the time of a bitter afflic- 
tion and slavery in Egypt. See Exod. xv. 23. and Ruth i. 23. 
Here, the blessed virgin Mary, the mother of our Lord, who 
had a real salutation, from the archangel Gabriel, 4000 years 
after this. " And the angel came in unto her, and said, Hail, 
4i thou art highly favoured, the Lord is with thee; blessed art 



chap. ii. PARADISE LOST. 199 

fires, and as lowest, first the nioon, whence are in her 
round visage those spots; being unpurged vapours, not 
yet turned into her substance: nor is it so, that the 
moon exhales no nourishment from her moist continent 
to higher orbs. The sun, that imparts light to all, in 
moist exhalations; and at evening drinks of the ocean. 
Though the trees of life in heaven bear ambrosial fruit, 
and the vines yield nectar, and though we brush man- 
na each morning from off the boughs, and find the 
ground covered with finest grain; yet God hath varied 
his bounty here with such new delight as may be com- 
pared with heaven, and think not I shall be backward 

to taste. So down they sat, and began to eat; 

the angel not seemingly, nor in a mist (the common 
gloss of theologists) but with keen despatch of real 
hunger, and concocting heat, to digest food: what re- 
dounds transpires with ease through spirits; nor is it a 
wonder, if it be true, that by fire the alchymist can 
turn, or holds it possible to turn, the basest and dros- 
siest of metals to gold, perfect as from the mine. Mean 
while Eve served naked at the table, and filled their 
flowing cups with pleasant liquors. O innocence, truly 
deserving of Paradise! then, if ever, had the sons of 
God (q) an excuse to have been enamoured at that 
sight; but in those hearts reigned purest and chastest 
love, nor was jealousy (the hell of the injured lover) 
understood. 

Thus when they had sufficed, not burthened nature, 
with meats and drinks, a sudden thought arose in the 
mind of Adam, not to let the opportunity slip given 

(q) The sons of God; i. e. the holy angels, whom some thought 
to have conversation with women, from a false sense put upon* 
Gen. vi. " And it came to pass when men began to multiply on 
" the face of the earth, and daughters were born unto them, 
" that the sons of God saw the daughters of men, that they were 
•* fain and they took them wives of all which thev chose. " 



200 PARADISE LOST. b«gk v. 

him by this great conference, to know something of things 
that where above the world he was placed in, and of 
their being who dwell in heaven; whose excellence 
he saw so far to transend his own; the divine effulgence 
of whose radiant forms, and whose high power so far 
exceeded human nature; and thus he addressed his 
wary speech to the messenger from heaven: 

Inhabitant with God! now I perceive thy great favour, 
in this honour done to Man, under whose lowly roof 
thou hast not disdained to enter, nor to taste these earth- 
ly fruits, which though not the food of angels, thou hast 
accepted in such a manner, as that thou couldst not 
seem to have eat more willingly at the feasts of heaven; 
yet what comparison can be made? 

To whom the angel made this reply: Oh Adam I 
there is but one Almighty, from whom all things pro- 
ceed, and to whom all things return, if notdepraved 
from good, all created such to perfection, one first mat- 
ter clothecl all with various forms, various degrees of 
substance, and life in things that live; but as nearer 
placed to God, or nearer tending to him, more refined, 
spirituous, and pure, each assigned in their several ac- 
tive spheres; until body work up to spirit, in the bounds 
proportioned to each kind: so from the root the green 
stalk springs lighter, and from thence the leaves more 
airy, last the bright and full blown flower breathes 
sweetest perfumes; Man's nourishment, flowers and their 
fruit, sublimed by degrees aspire to vital spirits, and so 
to animal and intellectual; giving both life, sense, fan- 
cy, and understanding, whence the soul receives rea- 
son, and reason discoursive or intuitive is her being; dis- 
course is oftenest yours 9 and intuition mostly ours; dif- 
fering but in degree, and being of the same kind. Make no 
wonder then, that I do not refuse to eat what God saw 
good for you, but convert it as you do to proper substance. 
The time may come, when men may partake with an- 



chap. ii. PARADISE LOST. gOl 

gels, and find no inconvenience in the diet, nor the fare 
too light; and from these corporal nutriments, improv- 
ed by length of time, perhaps your bodies at last may 
turn all to spirit, and you may ascend with wings to 
heaven, like us, or dwell at your choice here, or in 
heavenly Paradises; if ye be found obedient, and un- 
alterably keep his love firm and entire, whose progeny 
you are. Mean while enjoy your fill of what happi- 
ness this happy state can afford, and know that you 
are incapable of more. 

To whom the Father of mankind made answer: Fa- 
vourable spirit! my gentle and kind guest! thou hast 
well taught the way that might direct our knowledge, 
and set before us the compass of the whole creation; 
whereby we may, in contemplation of things created, 
ascend to God. But tell me, I pray thee, what was 
the meaning of that caution, ' If ye be found obedient?' 
Can Ave then ever want obedience to him, or is it pos- 
sible we should forsake his love, who formed us out of 
the dust, and placed us here in the fulness and utmost 
measure of bliss, that can be apprehended or sought 
after by human desires? to whom the angel made an- 
swer: Son of heaven and earth! to what I am about to 
say give great attention! that thou art happy, owe it 
to God; that thou continuest happy, owe to thyself, 
that is, owe it to thy obedience; therein stand firm: this 
was that caution given thee, therefore be advised: God 
made thee perfect, but not unchangeable, and he made 
thee good; but he left it in thy own power to persevere 
or not; ordained thy will free by nature, not over-rul- 
ed by inevitable fate, or strict necessity. He requires 
our voluntary, and not our necessitated service; such 
with him finds no acceptance, nor ever can find; for 
how can hearts that are not free be tried, whether they 
serve willingly or no? who will do nothing but what 
they must by destiny, and can choose no other? I my- 

2Q 



%0% 



PARADISE LOST. 



BOOK V, 



self, and all the host of angels that stand in the sight 
of the throne of God hold our happy state upon the 
same condition as you do yours, ' only while we hold 
our obedience/ and upon no other surety: we serve 
freely, because we love freely; it being in our will, ei- 
ther to love or not, and in this we either stand or fall: 
and some are already fallen, fallen to disobedience, 
and from heaven to deepest hell: from what high state 
of bliss into what misery! 

To whom our great ancestor replied: Divine in- 
structor! I have heard thy words attentively, and with 
an ear more delighted, than when the songs of cheru- 
bim, send heavenly music by night from the neighbour- 
ing hills. Nor was I ignorant, that I was both as to 
will and deed, created quite free: yet that we never 
shall forget to love and obey our Maker, who has laid 
but one command upon us so mild and so just, my con- 
stant thoughts always assured me, and assure me still; 
though what thou tellest me, hath passed in heaven, 
hath moved some doubt within me, but more hath it 
moved desire to hear (so be it, thou consent) the rela- 
tion at full: which must needs be very strange and 
worthy to be heard with sacred silence: there jet re- 
mains great part of the day to come, for the sun hath 
scarcely finished half his journey, and begun his other 
half in the great zone of heaven. 



chap. in. PARADISE LOST, &Q3 



CHAPTER HI. 

Raphael tells Jldam who his great enemy is, informs him of Sa~ 
tan 9 s first revolt, and what was the occasion thereof. Jlbdiel 
forsakes Satan and his party. 

Thus Adam made his request; and Raphael af- 
ter a short pause assenting, began thus: 

First of men! what thou desirest of me, is no small 
matter, for how shall I explain to human sense the in- 
visible exploits of contending spirits, or how relate 
without a renewal of past grief, the ruin of so many, 
who once while they stood firm to their obedience were 
so glorious and perfect? how lastly unfold the secrets 
of another world, which perhaps may be improper to 
reveal, yet this is dispensed with for thy good: and 
what is out of thy capacity, I shall so delineate by lik- 
ening spiritual things, to things corporal, as best may 
make them understood: though what if earth be only 
the shadow of heaven; and the things that are in them, 
much like one another more than upon earth they 
are imagined to be? 

This world as yet was not created, and the wild 
chaos reigned where now the heavens roll, and where 
the earth rests poised upon her own centre; when upon 
a day (for time applied to motion measures all things 
durable by past, present, and future, though it be in 
eternity) upon such a day, as heaven's great year 
brings forth, the heavenly host of angels, called by im- 
perial summons appeared forthwith before the throne 
of the Almighty, from all the ends of heaven, in bright 
order under their hierarchs: ten thousand thousand 
ensigns advanced high, stream in the air, standards, 
and banners, betwixt the van and the rear, and serve 
for distinction of hierarchies? of orders and degrees, or 



2G4 PARADISE LOST. book v. 

in their glittering tissues hear expressed holy memori- 
als^ acts of zeal and love fairly recorded. Thus when 
they stood in circles in number inexpressible, orb with- 
in orb, the infinite Father, by whom sat the Son, in 
the bosom of bliss, amidst them, as from a flaming 
mount, whose top brightness had made invisible, spake 
thus: 

All ye angels! children of light! thrones! domina- 
tions! princedoms! virtues! and powers! hear this my 
decree, which shall stand irrevocable. This day have 
I begot whom I declare my only Son, and anointed 
him upon his holy hill, he it is whom ye now behold 
at my right hand; I appoint him to be your head: and 
I have sworn by myself, that every knee in heaven 
shall bow to him, and confess him Lord. Under his 
great vicegerency do you all remain united, as though 
all were but one individual soul, and be for ever hap- 
py: who disobeys him, disobeys me, breaks the union, 
and that day becomes cast out from God and all bles- 
sedness, and falls into utter darkness, deep into the 
lowest gulf without any redemption, and without end. 
Thus spoke the Almighty, and all seemed well 
pleased with his words: seemed pleased, but all were* 
not so in reality. They spent that day like other so- 
lemn days in mystical song and dance about the sacred 
hill (which yonder starry sphere of planets, and of fix- 
ed stars, in all her wheels resembles nearest; eccentric, 
intervolved, and yet most regular when they seem most 
irregular) and in their motions divine harmony is ex- 
pressed so smoothly in charming airs, that God's own 
ear listens delighted. The evening approached now 
(for we have also our evening and our morning, not 
for necessity, but for pleasant variety) and from the 
dance with one consent, they turned themselves to 
sweet repast, tables are set all in circles, as they stood, 
and all on a sudden where piled up with the food of 



chap. in. PARADISE LOST. £00 

angels and bright nectar flows in cups of pearls and dia- 
monds, and massy gold; the produce of delicious vines 
that were the growth of heaven. 

Reposed upon banks of flowers, and crowned with 
rich garlands, they eat, and drink, and in sweet 
communion quaff immortality, and joy, before the all- 
bounteous King,, who gave with a copious hind and re- 
joiced in their joy. Now when the night exhaled with 
clouds, from that high mountain of God, whence light 
and shade both spring, had changed the full brightness 
of heaven to grateful twilight; (for night does not come 
there, in total darkness) and sweet dews had disposed 
all to rest, except the unsleeping eye of God; wide over 
all the plain, and far wider than all this globose earth, 
if it were spread out in length (for such are the courts 
of God) the angels dispersed in bands, and files, 
and extended their camp in numberless pavilions by 
leaving streams that run among the trees of life; and 
suddenly raised up celestial tabernacles where they 
slept, refreshed with the cool wind, except those, who 
in their turn sung melodious hymns all night long be- 
fore the throne of God. But Satan (call him so now, 
for his former name is no more heard in heaven) did 
not wake to any such purpose; he, one of the first, if not 
the very first archangel, very great in power, in favour, 
and pre-eminence; yet being filled with envy against 
the Son of God, who was that day honoured by his 
great Father, proclaimed Messiah, (?•) (and anointed 
king) could not bear through pride to see that sight, 
and thought himself lessened and impaired, conceiving 
thence disdain and deep malice, he resolved as soon 
as it was midnight, and all were in sleep, and silence^ 
to desert with all his legions, and contemptuously to 

(r) Messiah; Heb. Messias and Christos in Greek, i. e. the 
anointed. Christians believe that Jesus, born in Bethlehem, 
about A.M. 4000, in the reign of Agustus, is the true Messias 
or Christ. 



806 



PARADISE LOST. 



BOOK V. 



leave the supreme throne unworshipped and unobey- 
ed, and to him who was next in degree under him, thus 
spoke in seeret: 

My dear companion! dost thou sleep now? what 
sleep can close thy eyes, dost thou not remember the 
decree of yesterday, whieh hath passed the lips of *he 
almighty King of heaven? thou wast used to impart 
thy thoughts to me ? I mine to thee, waking we had but 
one mind, how then is it, that thy sleep makes us dif- 
fer, thou seest there are new laws imposed! new laws 
made by him who reigns, may raise new minds in us 
who serve, and new counsels to debate what may here- 
after happen: it is not safe to utter more in this place. 
— Bo thou assemble all those angels of whom we lead 
the chief; tell them that by command before morning, 
I, and all those who are under my command are to 
hasten homeward with speedy march, where we pos- 
sess the quarters of the north; there to prepare a fit 
entertainment to receive our King, the great Messiah, 
and his new commands, for that he intends very soon 
to pass triumphantly through all their hierarchies, and 
give them laws. 

Thus spoke the false archangel and into the breast 
of his unwary associate infused bad sentiments; who 
called together, or severally one by one, the regent 
powers that governed under him, and told them as he 
was taught, that it was the command of God. Now, 
before the morning that the great hierarchal standard 
was to move, tells the suggested cause: throws in am- 
biguous words between and jealousies, either to sound or 
taint integrity: but all obeyed the usual signal and the 
superior voice of their great potentate: (for high indeed 
was his degree and very great his name in heaven:) his 
countenance that was like the morning star, allured 
them, and with lies, he drew after him the third part 
of the host of heaven. 



chap. in. PARADISE LOST. %$y 

Mean while the eye of God (who discerns the most 
hidden thoughts) from forth his holy mountain, and 
from within the golden lamps that burn all night before 
him, saw (without help from their light) rebellion ris- 
ing, saw in whom, how spread among the sons of the 
morning, and what multitudes were leagued to oppose 
his high decree; when to his only Son, he said smiling: 

Son, thou in whom I behold my own glory in full 
splendor, the heir of all my power! it nearly concerns 
us now to be sure of our omnipotence; and with what 
arms we mean to hold what we have claimed from all 
eternity of godhead, or of empire: for such a foe is ris- 
ing as intends to erect his throne equal to ours, all 
through the spacious north; and not contented with 
this he has it in his thoughts to try in battle what our 
power, or our right is: let us take counsel, and to this 
contest draw up with speed all the power that is left 
us, and employ it in our defence, least unawares, we 
should lose this our high place, our hill and sanctuary. 
To whom the Son, with a calm and clear countenance, 
that shone with brightness unspeakable and divine, 
made answer: 

Almighty Father! thou justly hast thy foes in de- 
rision, and in thy own power secure, laughest at their 
vain designs, and vain tumults: which to me is the 
cause of glory, whom their hate shews more to advan- 
tage, when they shall see all power given me to quell 
their pride; and find by the event whether I am able 
to subdue those who rebel against thee, or be found the 
weakest in heaven. Thus spoke the Son: but Satan 
with great speed was far advanced with his powers, a 
host as innumerable as the stars of night, or drops of 
dew in the morning. They passed many regions, and 
mighty regencies of seraphim, potentates and thrones, 
in their several degrees: (regions to which all thy do- 
minions Adam is no more to be compared, than this 



208 



PARADISE LOST. 



BOOK V. 



garden is to all the earth, and all the sea) which hav- 
ing passed, at length, they came into the limits of the 
north, and Satan to his royal seat high upon a hill like 
a mountain upon a mountain with pyramids and towers 
hewn from quarries of diamonds and rocks of gold, the 
palace of great Lucifer, (s) (so called that structure in- 
terpreted in the dialect of men) which he not long after 
called the Mountain of the Congregation, in imitation 
of that mountain whereon the Messiah was declared 
the only begotten Son in the sight of heaven; so that 
he affected all equality with God: and thither assem- 
bled all his train; pretending that he was commanded 
so to do, to consult about the great reception of their 
king Messiah, who was to come thither: and with ca- 
lumnious art and counterfeited truth thus addressed 
the angels under his command: 

Thrones! dominations! princedoms! virtues! and 
powers! if these high titles yet remain, or are not 
merely titular, since another now has by decree en- 
grossed all power to himself, and eclipsed us under 
the name of the Anointed King; for whom we make 
all this haste of midnight march, and meet thus hurry- 
ing here, only to consult how we may best receive him, 
with wkat new honours can be devised, he coming to 
r-eceive from us a knee-tribute which we never yet 
paid: a vile prostration! too much to shew to one, but 
double, how can it be endured! to one first, and now 
another, which lie proclaims to be his image. But 
what if better counsels might influence our minds, and 
teach how to cast off this yoke? will you submit your 
necks? and do you choose to bend your humble knee? 
you will not, if I know or judge right of ye; or if ye 
know yourselves to be what ye are; the natives, and 

(s) Lucifer; Fr. Ital. Lat. i, e. a hearer of light. The first 
name of this archangel before his fall: because of his most eij 
eellent lisrht paid arlory. 



f hap. in. PARADISE LOST. g09 

sons of heaven; possessed by none before ye; and if 
all are not equal yet all are free, equally free: lor or- 
ders and degrees do not jar but consist well with liber- 
ty. Who can then either in reason or right pretend 
to assume monarchy over such as by right live his 
equals, and if less in power and splendor are yet equal 
in freedom? or who can introduce a law and decree 
upon us, who being without law cannot err? much 
less impose this anointed King to be our Lord, and 
look for adoration, to the abuse of our imperial titles, 
which assert that we were ordained to govern, and not 
to serve. 

Thus far his bold discourse had audience without 
any control, when Abdiel, (t) one among the sera- 
phim, than whom there was none obeyed divine com- 
mands more, or adored the Deity with more ardency, 
stood up, and in a flame of zeal thus severely opposed 
the current of his fury: 

Oh proud, false, and blasphemous argument! words! 
which no ear ever expected to hear in heaven, and least 
of all thou ungrateful wretch from thee, who art thyself 
placed so high above others! canst thou condemn with 
wicked reproach the just decree of God, which was 
pronounced and sworn! that to his only Son, by right 
honoured with the royal sceptre, every soul in heaven 
shall bow the knee, and in that due honour confess him 
to be rightful King? thou sayest it is unjust, positively 
unjust, to bind those who are free with laws, and to 
let equal reign over equals, and one over all, to whom 
none is to succeed.— Shalt thou give laws to God? shalt 
thou dispute the points of liberty with him, who made 
thee what thou now art, and formed and circumscribed 
the being of all the powers of heaven, just as he pleas- 

(t) Abdiel; Heb. i. e. the servant of God, the same as Oba- 
dial]; 

27 



£10 PARADISE LOST. book v. 

ed? yet taught by experience, we know now good he 
is, and how careful of our good and dignity; how far 
from any thought of making us less; rather bent, unit- 
ing us more near himself under one head, to exalt our 
happy state. — Eut suppose I were to grant thee, that 
it were unjust, that any equal should reign as king 
over his equals; thou (though very great and glorious) 
dost thou reckon thyself, or think all the angelical na- 
ture joined in one, equal with him who is the begotten 
Son? by whom (for he was the Word) the almighty 
Father made all things, even thee and all the other 
spirits of heaven, who were by him created in their 
bright orders, crowned with glory, and given glorious 
names, thrones, dominations, princedoms, virtues, and 
powers, real and essential powers, which are not ob- 
scured by his reign, but made more illustrious; since 
he becoming our head, becomes one of our number, 
his laws become our laAvs, and all honour done to him 

returns back again to us. Then cease this impious 

fury, and tempt not these angels to sin; but hasten to 
appease the wrath of the incensed Father, and the 
wrath of the incensed Bon, and repent in time while 
pardon may be found. 

Thus spoke Abdiel, the faithful and fervent seraph, 
but none seconded his zeal, as judged rash and singu- 
lar, and out of season, at which Satan rejoiced, and 
grown more haughty thus replied: 

Sayest thou that we were made then? and the work 
of secondary hands, by a task transferred from the 
Father to the Son? a strange and new point of doctrine! 
which we would know whence was learned: who is it 
that saw when this creation was? dost thou remember 
any thing about thy being made, while the Maker was 
giving thee being? we know no time when we were not, 
as we are now; we know of none before us, but where 
produced by a natural course of things, self-raised by our 



chap. in. PARADISE LOST. 21 i 

own quickening power, the ripe birth of this our native 
heaven, of which we are the natural sons: onr power 
and strength is ,our own, which shall teach us deeds of 
the highest importance, to try by proof who is our equal: 
then thou shalt behold, whether we intend to address 
and surround the almighty throne with adoration, or 
with defiance. Bo thou go and carry this report and 
these tidings' to the anointed King, and make haste be- 
fore something worse intercept thy flight. 

Satan spake thus, and a hoarse murmur gave ap- 
plause to his words through the infinite host, like 
the sound of deep waters; nevertheless the flaming and 
undaunted seraph Abdiel, though surrounded by foes 
and alone, thus answered boldly: 

Oh alienated from God, spirit forsaken of all good, 
and accursed! I see that thy fall is determined, and thy 
unhappy followers involved in this perfidious evil: the 
contagion being spread both of thy crime and punish- 
ment. Be not henceforth any more troubled, how to get 
rid of the yoke of God's Messiah; those indulgent laws 
will not be now vouchsafed, but other decrees not to 
be recalled are gone forth against thee. That golden 
sceptre which thou didst refuse to obey, is now changed 
to a rod of iron, to bruise and break thy disobedience. 
Well didst thou advise me to fly these wicked and de- 
voted tents, yet not for thy advice or threats do I do it, 
but least the wrath that threatens, raging into a sud- 
den flame, should destroy all without distinction; for 
expeet soon to feel his thunder on thy head, a devour- 
ing fire; then mourning, learn to know who is thy Cre- 
ator, and who hath power to uncreate and destroy thee. 
The seraph Abdiel spoke thus, who was found faithful 
among the faithless, alone found faithful among innu- 
merable false ones; he kept his loyalty, love, and zeal 
unmoved, unshaken, unscduced, and imierrified: though 



%i% 



PARADISE LOST. 



BOOK V. 



lie was single, neither their number nor example pre- 
vailed with him to swerve from the truth, nor altered 
the constancy of his mind: he passed forth from amidst 
them, through hostile scorns, which, being much su- 
perior to, he easily sustained, nor stood in fear of any 
violence, but returning their scorn back again upon 
them, he turned his face from those proud towers^ 
doomed to swift destruction. 



THE SIXTH BOOK 



PARADISE LOST. 



THE ARGUMENT. 

Raphael continues to relate how Michael and Gabriel went 
forth to battle against Satan and his angels; the first fight 
described. Satan and his powers retire under night: he calls 
a council; invents devilish engines, which in the second day's 
fight put Michael and his angels to some disorder, but they 
at length pulling up mountains, overwhelmed both the force 
and machines of Satan. The tumult not ending, God on the 
third day sends the Messiah his Son; for whom he had re- 
served the glory of that victory: He, in the power of his Fa- 
ther coming to the place, and causing all his legions to stand 
still on either side, with his chariot and thunder driving 
into the midst of his enemies, pursues them, unable to re- 
sist, towards the wall of heaven; which opening they leap 
down with horror and confusion into the place of punishment 
prepared for them in the deep: Messiah returns with triumph 
to his Father, 



CHAPTER L 

Raphael relates how Michael and Gabriel went forth to battle 
against Satan; the first fight described. 

Abdiel the dreadless angel, held his way all 
night unpursued through the wide plains of heaven; 
until returning morning brought on the light. There 
is a cave Avithin the mountain of God, and not far dis- 
tant from his throne, where by turns in a continual 
round light, and darkness, lodge and dislodge; which 
makes through heaven an agreeable change, like day 
and night: light issues forth at one door, and at the 
other obedient darkness enters, until the hour come for 
her to draw a veil over the heavens (though what is 
called darkness there, might seem twilight here) and 
now went forth the morning, such as it is in the highest 
heavens, arrayed in a celestial and golden hue, and 
the night went off when it approached shot through 
with bright beams; when what first met the sight of 
Abdiel was chariots and ilaming arms, and fiery steeds, 
and thick bright squadrons in battle array that cover- 
ed all the plain, reflecting blaze on blaze. He perceiv- 
ed Avar in readiness, and found that to be already 
known, which he thought to have reported for news: 
he then gladly mixed himself among those friendly 
powers, who received him with loud acclamations and 
joy, that out of so great a number fallen, yet there 
should one return not lost. They led him on, highly 
applauded to the sacred hill, and presented him before 



%i% PARADISE LOST. book vi. 

the supreme seat, from whence a voice was heard thus 
mild from the midst of a golden cloud: 

Well done, thou faithful servant of God! well hast 
thou fought the better fight; who single against revolt- 
ed multitudes, hast maintained the cause of truth, 
mightier in word than they can be in arms, and for the 
testimony of the truth hast bore a general reproach, far 
worse to bear than violence; for all thy care was to 
stand approved, in the sight of God, though the vast 
multitude of the apostate angels, judged thee to be per- 
verse. An easier conquest now remains for thee, as- 
sisted by this host of friends, to return back upon thy 
foes with greater glory, than thou didst depart from 
them with scorn; and to subdue them by force who 
refuse right reason for their law; Messiah for their 
King, who reigns by right of merit 

Go Michael! prince of the heavenly armies! and 
thou Gabriel! next in military art and power, go, and 
lead forth these my invincible sons; lead forth my armed 
saints by millions (equal in number to that ungodly re- 
bellious crew) and range them in order for the battle, 
assault them without fear with hostile arms and with 
fire, and pursuing them to the borders of heaven, drive 
them out from God and from bliss, into their place of 
punishment; the gulf of hell, which has already open- 
ed wide its fiery region of confusion to receive them 
in their fall. 

Thus spoke the voice of God, and the clouds began 
to darken all the hill, and smoke began to roll in dus- 
ky and heavy fiames; a sign that wrath divine w r as 
waked; nor with less terror began to sound from on 
high the loud etherial trumpet; at which command the 
militant powers, that stood firm for the cause of hea- 
ven (joined in vast bodies of irresistable union) moved 
on their bright legions in silence, to the sound of mu- 
sical instruments, that breathed into them an heroic 



chap, i- PARADISE LOST. si? 

ardour to great and adventurous deeds, under their god- 
like leaders, in the cause of the Almighty and his 
Messiah: on they move, so firm, that it was impossi- 
ble for their ranks to be divided by hills, valleys, 
woods or streams, for their march was high above the 
ground, and the yielding air bore up their nimble tread; 
as when every species of birds came summoned over 
Eden, flying in orderly array to receive their names of 
thee: so they marched over many a tract and wide pro- 
vince of heaven, tenfold the length of this earthly globe. 

At last, far in the horizon of the north appeared a fiery 
region, that reached the whole length and the utmost 
depth, drawn up in array of battle; and on nearer view 
might be seen the bright tops of innumerable spears, a 
throng of helmets and shields with various ornaments 
and boasting devices: these Were the united powers of 
Satan, hastening on with furious expedition; for they 
imagined that very day, either by conquest or by sur- 
prise, to win the mountain of God, and to set upon his 
throne the proud usurper and envier of his power; 
but their thoughts proved empty and vain in the mid- 
way: though at first it seemed very strange to us, that 
angels should make war against angels, and meet in fierce 
combat, who were used to meet so often unanimous in 
festivals of love and joy, and as the sons of one great 
Sire, praising the eternal Father. But now the shout 
began for the battle, and the rushing sound of the onset, 
which put an end to all milder thoughts. 

Satan sat high in the midst in his sun-bright chariot, 
exalted like a God, an idol of divine majesty, enclos- 
ed with flaming cherubim and with golden shields; then 
lighted from his resplendent throne (for now betwixt 
the two armies there was but small distance left, and 
front presented to front stood in terrible array, extend- v 
ing to a prodigious length) and before the ranks of the 
rebellious spirits, just when the armies where about to 

28 



MS 



PARADISE LOST 



BOOK TIo 



join, Satan advancing with vast and haughty strides, 
came swelling with imaginary power, and armed in ad- 
amant and gold: the seraph Abdiel could not endure 
that sight, where he stood among the mightiest, bent on 
the performance of greatest actions; and thus he searches 
and considers his own undaunted heart: 

Oh heaven! that there should yet remain such a re- 
semblance of the highest, where faith and truth remain 
no longer: wherefore should not strength and might fail 
when destitute of virtue, or prove weakest where it is 
most presumptuous? though to appearance he seems 
unconquerable, I mean (trusting in the assistance of 
the Almighty) to try his power; whose reason I have 
already tried, and found to be false and unsound: 
nor is it any thing but just, that he who hath got the 
better in the debate of truth, should do the same also 
in arms, and become a conquerer in both disputes alike; 
though when reason hath to deal with force, the contest 
is brutish raid foul, yet it is most fit that reason should 
overcome. Considering thus within himself, and step- 
ping out from his armed companions opposite to Satan, 
his daring foe, he met him half way, who was more in- 
censed, to see him advance so boldly towards him, and 
to hear from him this defiance: 

Proud angel! art thou met? thy hope was to have 
reached the height of thy aspiring without opposi- 
tion, and to have found the throne of God unguarded, 
and his side abandoned, at the terror of thy power and 
potent voice: thou fool! not to consider, how vain it is 
to rise up in arms against the Almighty; who out of 
the smallest things could have raised armies continually 
without end, to defeat thy folly; or with his own hand, 
which reaches beyond all limit, without any other as- 
sistance could have finished thee and whelmed all thy 
legions under darkness: but thou mayest see that all are 
not of thy train; there be some holy angels besides my- 



chap. i. PARADISE LOST. 219 

self, who esteem fidelity and piety towards God, though 
not visible to thee, when I alone seemed in thy world 
erroneously to dissent from all: thou seest my party, 
and now mayest learn too late, that when thousands 
err, some few may be in the right. To whom Satan, 
with malicious and scornful eyes, gave answer: 

In the wished-for hour of my revenge, but ill for 
thee, art thou returned from flight, whom I have been 
first seeking, seditious angel! now art thou come to re- 
ceive that reward which thou hast merited, the first tri- 
al of this right-hand provoked; since that tongue inspir- 
ed with contradiction; first dared to oppose a third part 
of the Gods, met in council to assert their godheads, 
who while they feel divine vigour within themselves, 
neither can or will allow omnipotence to be the attri- 
bute of any. But well it is thou art come before thy fel- 
lows, ambitious to win from me something to brag of, 
that thy success may be an example of destruction to 
the rest; only I have given thee this pause between 
(lest if I had not, thou shouldest have boasted that I 
could not answer thee) to let thee know, that at first I 
thought that liberty and heaven had been the same 
thing to heavenly souls; but now I perceive that most 
are so slothful, that they had rather serve, be attending 
spirits, and trained up in festivals and songs; such are 
these thou hast armed, the singing minstrelsy of hea- 
ven, slavery contending against freedom, as the com- 
parison of this day's actions shall prove. 

To whom in few words Abdiel replied sternly: 
Apostate spirit! thou errest still, and wilt find no end 
of erring, being out of the path of truth; unjustly thou 
brandest the service that God or nature ordains with 
the name of servitude; God and nature command the 
same things, when he who rules is most worthy and 
most excellent above those he governs. It is servi- 
tude to serve the unwise, or who hath rebelled against 



PARADISE LOST 



BOOK VI. 



those that are worthier than himself, as thy followers 
now serve thee, thou thyself not being free, but in sla- 
very even to thyself, yet impiously darest upbraid our 
obedience. Do thou reign in hell, thy kingdom, and 
let me serve the ever blessed God in heaven, and obey 
his divine commands, which are worthiest to be obey- 
ed! yet do not thou expect realms, but chains in hell, 
and punishment: mean while receive from me (who 
just now thou saidest was returned from flight) this 
greeting upon thy wicked head. Saying this he lifted 
up his arm to strike a blow, which immediately with 
great strength and swiftness fell on Satan's proud crest, 
that no sight nor motion of swift thought could inter- 
cept such ruin, much less could his shield: he recoiled 
back ten paces; the tenth his massy spear supported 
him upon his bended knee; as if upon earth subterra- 
nean winds and waters had forced their way, and side- 
long had pushed a mountain from its seat, half sunk with 
all its trees. The rebellious angels were seized with 
amazement, but more with rage, to see their great ge- 
neral thus foiled; while our powers were filled with 
joy and shouts, foretelling victory and fierce desire of 
battle; whereat Michael ordered the archangel trum- 
pet to be sounded through all the heavens, and the 
faithful armies rung with hosannah to the highest: nor 
did the adverse legions stand still to gaze, but with 
sounds as hideous as ours were heavenly, joined the 
horrid shock. Now storming fury arose, and a cla- 
mour, such as until now was never heard in heaven; 
arms clashing upon armour, made a harsh and terrible 
discord, and the furious wheels of brazen chariots 
raged: the noise of the conflict was dreadful, the hiss 
of fiery darts flew in vollies over head, and as they 
flew covered either army with fire, under which they 
both rushed to battle, with ruinous assault and rage 
not to be extinguished: all heaven resounded, and all 



ghap. i. PARADISE LOST. 2&t 

earth had it been then would have been shaken to its cen- 
tre: what wonder? when millions of encountering fierce 
angels fought on each side, the least of whom could 
move these elements, and arm himself with all their 
force: how much more power had they, army against 
army, warring without number, to raise dreadful com- 
bustion, and disturb (though they had not power to 
destroy) their native seat! had not the eternal and al- 
mighty King, from the seat of his power, over-ruled 
and set limits to their power: though their number was 
such, that each legion might be thought a great army, 
in strength each armed hand was as that of a entire 
legion; they were led in fight, yet each single warrior 
seemed like a leader, and as in chief; expert, and 
knowing when to advance, when to stand or turn the 
sway of battle, when to open, and when to close the 
ranks; they had no thought of flight or of retreat, or 
any unbecoming action that argued fear; each relied 
upon himself, as if only in his arm lay the balance of 
the victory: deeds were done of eternal fame, for the 
war was spread wide and various; sometimes a stand- 
ing fight upon firm ground, then mounting upon main 
wing, all the air was troubled; for all the air seemed then 
to be nothing but contending fire; the battle hung a long- 
time in even scale, until Satan (who that day had shewn 
prodigious power, and in arms had met no equal) rang- 
ing through the dreadful attack of seraphim, confused- 
ly fighting, at length saw where the sword of Michael 
smote and felled whole squadrons at once; his huge 
weapon brandished aloft in both hands, the horrid edge 
came down, wasting far and near. Satan hasted to 
withstand such destruction, and opposed his ample 
shield that was of vast circumference, a rocky orb of 
tenfold adamant. Michael, the great archangel, gave 
over fighting at his approach, glad as hoping here to 
end intestine war in heaven, by subduing Satan, or 



%%% 



PARADISE LOST. 



BOOK VI. 



dragging him captive in chains; but with a hostile 

frown, and a countenance all inflamed, first spoke to 

him; 
Thou author of evil! which until thy revolt had no 

name in heaven, now as thou seest these acts of hate- 
ful strife are become plentiful; hateful to all, though 
by just measure heaviest upon thyself and all thy ad- 
herents: how hast thou disturbed the blessed peace of 
heaven, and brought misery into nature, which was 
not created until the time of thy rebellion? how hast 
thou instilled thy malice into thousands, who were 
once upright and faithful, but now are proved false? 
but think not to trouble holy rest here in heaven; 
heaven casts thee out from all her confines; heaven, 
which is the seat of bliss, suffers not deeds of vio- 
lence and war to be done here: hence then! and let 
evil, which is thy offspring, go along with thee to hell, 
the place of evil: hence thou and thy wicked crew! 
and there stir up broils; before this my avenging sword 
begin thy doom, or some more sudden vengeance, wing- 
ed immediately from God, hurl thee down headlong 
with still additional pain. 

Thus spake Michael, the prince of the angels; to 
whom the adversary Satan replied: Think not with 
empty and airy threats to awe those, whom yet with 
deeds thou canst not: hast thou put the least of these 
to flight? or made fall, but that they rise again unvan- 
quished? dost thou think it easier to contend with me, 
that thou shouldst hope, imperious archangel, with 
threats to chase me hence? mistake not so much, as to 
think that we shall end so that strife which thou call- 
est evil, but we style the strife of glory; which we in- 
tend to win, or else turn this heaven itself into the hell 
thou hast been telling fables of; here intending how- 
ever to dwell free, if not to reign: mean while thy ut- 
most force (and call him who is named Almighty to 



chap. i. PARADISE LOST. %%% 

thy assistance) I have not fled from; but instead of that, 
have sought thee far and near. 

They ended talking, and both addressed themselves 
for fight in a manner not to be described; for who can 
relate, though with the tongue of angels, or to what 
things liken it that are seen upon earth, that may lift 
the human imagination to such a height of godlike 
power? for they seemed likest gods, whether they stood 
still or moved; in arms, in stature, and motion, fit to 
decide the great empire of heaven: now their fiery 
swords waved, and made broad circles in the air; their 
shields, like two broad suns, blazed opposite each 
other, while either side looked on with expectation and 
horror: the angelical bands from each hand where the 
fight before was hottest retired with speed, and left 
large field for them to combat in; it being unsafe to 
remain near such commotion: such (to set great things 
forth by small) as if the concord of nature being broke, 
war was sprung among the constellations, and two 
planets rushing from a malign aspect of fierce opposi- 
tion, should meet in the middle of the sky, and confound 
their jarring spheres. Both together, with an arm next 
to Almighty, lifted up imminent, aimed one stroke that 
might determine at once and not need repetition, nor 
did there appear any odds in power, or in swiftness, 
to prevent each other; but the sword of Michael, which 
he had from the armory of God, was given him tem- 
pered so, that nothing either keen or solid might re- 
sist that edge; it met the sword of Satan, descending 
with great force to strike, and cut it quite in two, nor 
stayed there, but wheeling swift reversed, deeply enter- 
ing, divided all his right side. It was then Satan first 
knew pain, and writhed himself to and fro, rolling 
about with anguish, so sorely the piercing sword with 
separating sharpness passed through him; but the hea- 
venly substance soon closed, which could not be long 



%M PARADISE LOST. book vi. 

divided, and from the gash flowed blood, such as ce- 
lestial spirits may bleed, and stained all bis armour, 
which before was so bright. Forthwith on every side 
many strong angels run to his aid, who interposed in 
his defence; while others bore him on their shields 
back to his chariot, where it stood retired some dis- 
tance off the files of war; there they laid him, gnash- 
ing his teeth for anguish, shame, and despite, to find 
himself not matchless, and have his pride humbled by 
such a rebuke, so far beneath the confidence he had 
conceived to have equalled God in power: yet he heal- 
ed soon; for spirits that live throughout their whole 
being, live wholly in every part (not like frail Man, 
whose life is in his entrails, heart, head, liver, or reins) 
and cannot die but by annihilation, nor receive any 
mortal wound into their fine and spiritual compositions, 
no more than thin and fluid air can: they live as if 
they were all heart, all head, all eye, ear, intellect, 
and sense; and as they please can form themselves, 
and assume what size, colour, or shape pleases them 
best, whether it be less or more substantial. 

Mean while in other parts where the powers of 
Gabriel fought, other like deeds deserved to be re- 
membered; who fiercely pierced into the deep array 
of the furious king Moloch, who defied him, and 
threatened to drag him bound at his chariot wheels, 
nor from the holy one of heaven refrained his blas- 
phemous tongue; but soon by the sword of Gabriel be- 
ing cloven down to the waist, with shattered arms, and 
pain to which he was before a stranger, fled bellowing 
away. On each wing Uriel and Raphael vanquished 
each his vaunting foe, Adramelech (a) and Asmodeus 

(a) Jldramelech; Ileb. i. e. a magnificent king A god of So- 
pliarvaim and Assyrian countries, 2 Kings xvii. 31. < ; And 
" the Avites made Nibhaz, and Tartak, and the Sepharvites 
" burnt their children in fire to Adramelech, and Anamelech. 
" the gods of Sepharvaim." 



«haf. i. PARADISE LOST. <%>% 

(though powerful and armed in a rock of diamond) 
two very great angels, that disdained to be less than 
gods; but in their flight they learned to think a little 
meaner of themselves, being mangled with gashly 
wounds, through their broad and plated coats of mail. 
Nor did Abdiel stand unmindful to annoy all that was 
possible the atheist crew, but with redoubled blows 
overthrew Ariel and Arioc, and the violence of the 
scorched and blasted Ramiel, a very haughty and as- 
piring angel. 

I might relate of thousands, and make their names 
immortal here upon earth; but those elect angels suffi- 
ciently contented with their fame in heaven, do not 
seek the praise of men; and the fallen angels, though 
wonderous in might and in acts of war, nor less eager 
of renown, yet by doom being blotted out of the book 
of heaven and all sacred remembrance, let them dwell 
nameless in dark oblivion: for strength divided from 
truth and justice, is so far from being laudable, that it 
merits nothing but dispraise and ignominy; yet being 
vainglorious aspires to glory, and seeks fame through 
infamy: therefore let their doom be eternal silence. 

And now their mightiest chief being quelled, the bat- 
tle began to be disordered and broken into, with rout 
and confusion; all the ground was strewed with shiv- 
ered armour, and upon a heap lay overturned chariot 
and charioteer, and fiery foaming steeds: those who 
stood gave back, overwearied, and scarcely through 
the faint army of Satan maintaining a defensive fight, 
or surprised with pale fear and sense of pain (being 
the first fear and pain they had ever known) fled 
shamefully, brought to such evil by the sin of dis- 
obedience; until that hour not having been liable to 
fear, or flight, or pain. Far otherwise the holy saints 
(standing firm in the orders they were first drawn up) 
advanced entire, invulnerable, and in armour that was 

29 



22Q PARADISE LOST. book vi, 

impenetrable: such high advantages their innocence, 
not to have sinned, not to have disobeyed, gave them 
above their enemies! they stood unwearied in fight, 
not liable to receive pain from any wound, though they 
might be removed from their places by violence. 



CHAPTER II. 

Satan and his powers retire under night; he puts Michael and 
his angels to some disorder in the second day's fight, but they 
overwhelm both his force and his engines. 

Now night began her course, and bringing on 
darkness over heaven and silence, there was a truce 
made to the hateful din of Avar, and both the victor and 
the vanquished, as soon as it was night retired. Mi- 
chael and his angels who had the advantage on their 
side, encamping on the field where the battle had been 
fought, placed cherubic waving fires round their watches 
in guard: on the other part, Satan with his rebellious 
angels disappeared, and took their stations far in the 
dark, where finding it impossible to take any rest, he 
called his potentates to council by night, and standing 
up in the midst of them, thus began to speak: 

Dear companions! now tried in danger, and in arms 
found to be invincible, and not worthy of liberty 
only (the thing we pretended to contend for) but of 
what we more affect, honour, empire, glory, and re- 
nown, who have sustained one day (and if one day, 
why not for ever?) in a doubtful fight, what God with 
his greatest power could send against us from about 
his throne, and what he thought sufficient to subdue 
us to his will. But it does not prove so. — Then it 
seems we may make a judgment, that he is fallible as 



chap. ii. PARADISE LOST. 337 

to the knowledge of future things, though until now he 
has been thought omniscient. It is true, happening to 
be worse armed, we have sustained some disadvantage, 
and experienced what pain is; but we know withal, of 
how little consequence it is and despise it, since we 
find that we cannot be destroyed, and that our wounds 
soon close, healed by our native vigour. Of so small 
an evil let us think the remedy must be easy; perhaps 
when we meet next, better arms may give us the ad- 
vantage, and destroy our enemies, or at least make 
that equal between us, which before made the odds, 
where there is none in nature: if by any other hidden 
cause they are indeed superior, while we can preserve 
our minds unhurt, and our understanding sound, we 
shall discover it by consultation and proper search. 

He sat down, and there stood up in the assembly 
Nisroc, (b) one of the chief of the principalities; he 
looked as one escaped from the slaughter of the battle, 
fatigued and wearied out, his armour shattered and cut 
to pieces, and gloomy in his aspect; he thus replied: 

Deliverer from new lords! and leader to the free en- 
joyment of our right, as we are gods! yet it is hard for 
gods, and we find it too much to fight in pain, against 
those who feel none, and are incapable of suffering; 
from which evil nothing but ruin can ensue; for what 
signifies valour or strength, if accompanied with pain, 
which subdues all things, and makes weak the hands of 
the most powerful? Perhaps we might be willing to be 
deprived of the sense of pleasure, and live without re- 
pining in quiet and content, which is the calmest life; 
but pain is perfect misery, a real evil, and if it be ex- 

(b) Nisroc* or Nisroch; Heb. i. e. a young eagle. A god of the 
Assyrians, worshipped at Nineveh, by Sennacherib, 2 Kings xix. 
37. " And it came to pass, as he was worshipping in the house 
ki of Nisroch his god, that Adrammelech and Sharezer his sons 
* ; smote him with the sword." 



%%S PARADISE LOST. book vi. 

cessive, overturns all patience. He therefore, who can 
invent what we may offend more forcibly our yet un- 
wounded enemies with, or how we shall arm ourselves 
with the same defence they have, in my opinion de- 
serves no less, than what we already owe for our de- 
liverance. 

Whereto Satan, with a composed look, replied: That 
which thou rightly believest so necessary to our success, 
is not now to be invented, it being already in my pow- 
er. Which is there of us, who beholds the bright sur- 
face of this celestial mould upon which we stand, this 
spacious continent of heaven, adorned with such diver- 
sity of plants, fruits, sweetest flowers, jewels, and gold; 
whose eye is it that surveys these things so superficially, 
as not to observe from whence they grow deep under 
the ground, made of dark and crude materials, of spi- 
rituous and fiery sulphur, until touched with the ray 
of heaven and tempered, they shoot forth so beautifully 
up into light? these the deep shall yield us in their first 
forms, pregnant with strange fire, which being rammed 
into hollow engines, long and round, and touched at 
the other end with fire, dilated and put into a violent 
motion, shall, with noise like thunder, send from far 
such implements of mischief among our foes, as shall 
overwhelm and dash to pieces whatever stands against 
them; so that they shall be afraid that we have disarm- 
ed the thunderer of his only dreaded thunderbolt: nor 
shall our labour be long, for yet before break of day 
what we wish shall be effected: mean while cheer up, 
and abandon fear; think nothing hard to strength join- 
ed with good counsel, much less to be despaired of. 

He finished his speech, and his words gave a little 
glimmering of joy to their dejected countenances, and 
revived their languished hope; all admired the inven- 
tion, and it seemed so easy, once being found (which 
being unfound most would have thought impossible) 



chap. ii. PARADISE LOST. £29 

that every one wondered, how he missed to be the in- 
venter of it: yet possibly, Adam, some of thy race in 
future time (if malice should abound) intent on mis. 
chief, or inspired with infernal machination, may in- 
vent some such instrument, to plague the sons of men 
for sin; bent on war and mutual slaughter. Forthwith 
they rushed out from the council, to undertake this 
work; no one delayed the time in argument, Imt innu- 
merable hands were ready; they turned up the celes- 
tial soil wide in a moment, and saw beneath the ori- 
ginals of nature; in their unripe conception they found 
and mingled sulphurous and nitrous matter, and with 
subtle art having digested and dried it, they reduced 
it to black grain, and conveyed it into the stores, and 
part of them provide hidden veins of mineral and stone 
digged up (nor hath this earth entrails much unlike) 
whereof to form their engines, and their balls that be- 
ing discharged might carry ruin with them; part pro- 
vide reeds, that being lighted, might with a touch give 
fire to their engines. So under the shadow of the 
night, secretly and unespied they finished all, and with 
silent circumspection set it in order. 

Now when the fair and shining morning appeared 
in heaven, the victorious angels rose up, and the morn- 
ing trumpet sounded to arms: they stood completely 
armed, in armour of gold, a shining host, and were 
soon drawn up in bands: others looked round from the 
hills, and light armed scouts scoured each quarter, to 
discover the distant foe, where lodged, or whither fled, 
or if halting, or in motion for the fight: they soon met 
him, moving near them under spread ensigns, in a slow 
but firm battalion: Zophiel, (c) the swiftest among the 
cherubim, with his greatest speed came flying, and 
thus in the middle of the air he cried out aloud: 

.(c) Zophiel; Heb. i. e. the spy or watch of God. 



2S0 



PARADISE LOST. 



BOOK VI. 



Arm, warriors, arm for the fight, the foe whom we 
thought fled is very near at hand, and to-day will save 
us the trouble of pursuing him far; there is no fear of 
his flight, he comes with so large a body, and I see 
settled in his face a presumptuous resolution and se- 
curity. Let each gird his armour well, fit well his 
helmet, and hold his shield with all his strength, either 
borne even or high; for this day, if I conjecture right, 
will pour down no slight showers of darts and arrows, 
but a rattling storm of such as will be bearded with 
fire. 

Thus he warned them, who were themselves aware 
feefore, and soon they took the alarm, and instantly, 
without any impediment or disturbance, moved on- 
ward in order of battle; when behold! not far distant 
the foe approaching with heavy pace, training his de- 
vilish engines in such a manner, that they were sur- 
rounded on every side with thick squadrons of his an- 
gels, to hide the fraud. Both armies stood a while at 
the interview, but suddenly Satan appeared at the head 
of his, and was heard thus commanding aloud: 

Vanguard! open your foremost ranks to the right 
and left, unfold the front; that all who hate us may 
see how we seek peace and quietness, and stand ready 
with open breast to receive them, if they like our terms, 
and turn not their backs upon us. But that I doubt 
of; however, lei heaven be witness anon, while we 
freely discharge our part: you, who stand appointed, 
do as you have received orders, and touch what we 
propound briefly and loud, so that there may be nobo- 
dy but what may hear. 

So speaking, in a scoffing manner, and with words 
of a double meaning; he had scarcely ended, when 
the front divided to the right and left, and retired to 
either flank, which discovered to our eyes a new and 
stransc sisht; we saw a threefold row of mounted pi! 



chap. ii. PARADISE LOST. 231 

lars, which were fixed upon wheels; for they seemed 
most like pillars (or hollowed oak, or fir, with their 
branches lopt off) of brass, iron, or other material; but 
what convinced us they were not pillars, was that they 
were hollow, and their mouths with hideous orifice 
gaped wide on us: behind each stood a seraph, and in 
his hand held a lighted reed; while we stood in sus- 
pense, abstracted and withdrawn into ourselves, but 
not long, for on a sudden they all at once put forth 
their reeds, and with a nice touch applied them to a 
narrow vent; immediately (though it was soon darken- 
ed with smoke) all heaven appeared in a flame, which 
was belched from those deep-throated engines; whose 
roar filled with outrageous noise and tore all the air, 
violently discharging their devilish burthen, chained 
thunderbolts, and a prodigious number of balls of iron, 
which they levelled on the armies of God with such 
impetuous fury, that whosoever were smote by them, 
could not possibly stand on their feet, though before 
they stood as firm as rocks, but down they fell by thou- 
sands, and angel fell upon archangel, the sooner be- 
cause of their armour (for unarmed as spirits they might 
easily have evaded it, either by contracting their sub- 
stances or removing.) But now followed the break- 
ing of their ranks, and a forced rout: it was to no pur- 
pose to open their files, that stood close and as it were 
locked together. What could they do? if they rushed 
on, a repeated repulse and another indecent overthrow 
would render them yet more despised, and a greater 
subject of laughter to their foes; for another row of sera- 
phim stood ranked in view, in posture ready to dis- 
charge their second tire of thunder; and yet to return 
back defeated they abhorred worse. Satan beheld their 
condition, and thus in derision called out to his com- 
panions: 



232 PARADISE LOST. book vi. 

Friends! what is the matter these proud conquerers 
do not come on? one while they seemed to be coming 
fiercely, and when we (and what could we do more) 
propounded terms of composition, and to give them 
fair entertainment with open front and breast, present- 
ly they changed their minds, and fell into strange va- 
garies, as if they had a mind to dance, and yet for a 
dance they seemed somewhat wild and extravagant; 
perhaps for joy we offered them peace: but I suppose 
if our proposals were heard once again, we should 
compel them to a quick resolution. 

To whom thus in like frolicksome manner spoke 
Belial: Leader! the terms that we sent were terms of 
very great weight, the contents were hard, full of force, 
and urged home, such as we might easily perceive 
amused them all, nay and stumbled many; for who re- 
ceives them right must not be weak, but not being un- 
derstood, they have this gift beside, they shew us when 
our foes are not able to walk upright. 

So they stood scoffing in a ludicrous manner among 
themselves, and elevated in their thoughts beyond all 
doubt of victory; so easily they presumed to match 
the eternal power of God with their inventions: they 
made a scorn of his thunder, and derided all his host, 
while they for a time stood in trouble: but they did not 
long so; at length rage prompted them, and found them 
arms, fit to make opposition against such hellish mis- 
chief: forthwith (now observe what excellence and 
power God hath placed in his mighty angels) they 
threw away their arms and flew to the hills (for earth 



so far resembles heaven, that it hath this pleasing va- 
riety of hill and valley) and running as swift as light- 
ning, they tore the fixed hills, loosening them to and 
fro, from their foundations, with all their load of rocks, 
waters, and woods, and lifting them up by the tops, 
bore them in their hands. Thou mayest be assured 



®hap. in. PARADISE LOST. £33 

that amazement and terror seized the armies of Satan, 
when they saw the dreadful bottoms of mountains turn- 
ed upwards come towards them; and whelmed over 
all the tripple row of those cursed engines, and that in 
which they had put all their confidence buried deep 
under the weight of mountains: they themselves were 
next invaded, and there came upon their heads, flung 
through the air, main promontories, oppressing whole 
legions: their armour helped to do them mischief, crush- 
ed in and bruised into their substance, which occasion- 
ed them great pain and many a grievous groan, strug- 
gling long underneath their bondage, before they could 
wind themselves out of such a prison, though they were 
spirits of purest light (that is, they had been once the 
purest, but now by reason of sin were become grosser.) 
The rest of the bad angels which were not overwhelm- 
ed, imitating the angels of God, betook them to the 
same sort of arms, and tore up the neighbouring hills; 
so that hills in the middle of the air encountered hills, 
hurled dreadfully to and fro, that they fought under 
ground in dismal darkness; horrid confusion arose 
heaped upon confusion; the noise was as it were in- 
fernal, and war to this uproar seemed but a civil game, 



CHAPTER III. 

The tumult not ending, God sends the Messiah his Son who 
alone overcomes his enemies; drives them out of heaven, and 
returns with triumph to his Father. 

Now all heaven had gone to wreck, overspread 
with ruin, had not the almighty Father in his most 
holy sanctuary, where he sits and beholds all things 
and their consequences, foreseen thus tumult, and per- 
mitted it all, not without design; that so he might fulfil 

his great purpose to honour his anointed Son, by ma- 
30 



%M 



PARADISE LOST 



BOOK VI. 



king him avenged upon his enemies, and by declaring 
all power to be transferred to him: whence to the Son 
who sat by him upon his throne, he spake thus: 

Beloved Son! the brightness of my glory! in whose 
face is seen what is otherwise invisible, what I am by 
Deity, and by whose hands I do what I decree, who 
art second Omnipotence! there are past two days 
(that is two days as we make computation in heaven) 
since Michael and his powers went forth to resist those 
disobedient angels; their tight hath been very sore, as it 
was likely it should be, when two such foes meet in 
arms: for I left them to themselves, and thou knowest 
they were formed equal in their creation, excepting 
what sin hath impaired, which as yet hath wrought in- 
sensibly, because I have suspended their condemnation 
for a time; for which reason they must fight for ever, 
and no determination be which shall overcome; war 
hath performed what war can do, is wearied out, and 
hath let loose the reins to raging disorder, armed with 
mountains as with weapons, which makes strange work 
in heaven, and might prove of dangerous consequence. 

As two days therefore are past, the third is thine; I 
have ordained it for thee, and have suffered thus far, 
that the glory may be thine of putting an end to this 
great war, which none but thyself can. Into thee I 
have transferred such immense virtue and grace, that 
in heaven and hell all may know thy power to be above 
comparison; and this perverse commotion thus govern- 
ed, to make manifest that thou art worthiest to be the 
heir of all tilings, and to be king by holy anointment, 
which is thy deserved right. Go then, thou most pow- 
erful, in the might of thy Father! ascend my chariot, 
and guide those wheels that shake the foundation of 
heaven; bring forth all my instruments of Avar, my thun- 
der and my bow; gird on my all-powerful arms, and 
take to thee my sword; pursue these sons of darkness. 



chap. in. PARADISE LOST. 235 

and drive tliem out from heaven into the utter deep; 
their let them learn at leisure to despise God, and his 
anointed king the Messiah. 

He spoke thus, and shone fully with direct rays upon 
his Son, who in an unspeakable manner received all 
his Father into Ms face, where his power and glory 
was expressed at full; and thus the Son made answer: 

Oh Father! supreme of all heavenly powers! the 
first, the highest, holiest, and best! thou always art 
seeking to glorify thy Son, and I always, as is most 
just, to glorify thee: this I account my glory, my ex- 
altation, and all my delight, that thou well pleased in 
me declarest thy will to be fulfilled, which to fulfil is 
all my happiness. The sceptre and power which thou 
hast given I assume, and shall more gladly resign, 
when at last thou shalt be all in all, and 1 in thee shall 
be for ever, and in me all those whom thou lovest; but 
whom thou hatest I hate, and as I put thy mildness on, 
so I can put on thy terrors, being in all things thy 
image; and being armed with thy might, shall soon rid 
heaven of these rebellious spirits, and drive them down 
to the ill mansion prepared for them, to chains of dark- 
ness, and the worm that never dies; who could revolt 
from their just obedience to thee, whom to obey is en- 
tire happiness. Then shall thy saints, being far se- 
parated from and unmixed with the impure, surround- 
ing tby holy mountain, sing to thee (and I the chief 
among them) unfeigned hallelujahs, and hymns of the 
highest praise. 

Having said thus, bowing over his sceptre, he rose 
from the right-hand of God, where he sat; and the 
third holy morning began to shine through heaven. 
The chariot of God the Father rushed forth with a 
sound like a whirlwind, flashing thick flames, having 
wheels within wheels, which needed not to be drawn, 
having in themselves the power of motion, but yet were 



g36 PARADISE LOST. book vi. 

led on by four forms, like cherubim, each of them 
having four wonderful faces, and all their bodies and 
their wings were set with eyes like stars; -the wheels 
had eyes of beril, (d) and fires went up and down be- 
tween: over their heads there was ehrystal firmament, 
where upon a throne made of saphire (inlaid with pure 
amber, and adorned with great variety of colours) the 
Messiah ascended, completely armed in heavenly ar- 
mour of radiant Urim (e) being all of divine work- 
manship; at his side was hung his bow and quiver, 
stored with three-bolted thunder; and round about him 
rolled fiercely smoke, kindling flame, and flying sparks 
of fire. He came onward, attended with ten thousand 
thousand saints; shining at great distance, and twen- 
ty thousand chariots of (rod (for I heard their number) 
were seen half on each hand. He rode sublime on the 
bright sky, upon the wings of cherubim, upon a throne 
of saphire, conspicuous far and wide: but being first 
seen by his own angels, they were surprised with un- 
expected joy, when they saw the great ensign of the 

(rf) Beril or Beryl; Chald. Burla; Arab. Mbelor; which the 
Greeks and Latins turned into Beryllos. But Exod. xxviii. 
20. and Ezek. i. 16. x. 9. it is called Tarshish? which is also 
t\\t name of the ocean, Psal. xlviii. 8. because this stone is of a 
sea colour. The Septuagint translates it, Chrysolite, Gr. i. e. 
the gold-^coloiired stone. It is a precious stone of a feint green 
colour, like the water of the sea. Aser was engraven upon it; 
predicting that his habitations should be upon the sea coast, as 
it happened, Josh. xix. 29. This description of the chariot of 
the Deity is taken from the prophet Ezekiel and the Revela- 
tions. 

(e) Urim; Heb. plural, i. e. lights. This word with Thiim^ 
mim 1 i. e. perfections, was put in the high-priest's breast-plate; 
to inquire and to receive answers from God; which continued in 
that church until the Babylonish captivity, Ezra ii. 63. Neh, 
vi. 63. And the Tirshatha said unto them, that they should 
not eat of the most holy things, till there stood up a priest with 
Urim and Thummim. 



chap. in. PARADISE LOST. 237 

Messiah blaze, borne up aloft by angels, which is his 
sign in heaven; under whose conduct Michael soon re- 
duced his army, which were spread round about on 
either wing, and made them all one body under him 
their Head: power divine prepared the way before 
him, and the hills that hid been tore up by the roots, 
at his command went back to the places from whence 
they had been taken, for they heard his voice and obey- 
ed it; the face of heaven was restored to what it was 
before, and the hills and valleys were again covered 
with fresh flowers. 

His unhappy enemies saw all this, but stood obdu- 
rate, and rallied their powers to rebellious fight, des- 
pair pushing them forward, thinking (insensible as they 
were) that they could not be worse: is it possible such 
perverseness could dwell in heavenly spirits? but to 
convince the proud; how little signs or wonders avail 
to move the stubborn heart to repentance, they became 
hardened the more, by that which ought to have most 
reclaimed them; for grieving to see his glory, they were 
seized with envy at the sight, and aspiring to his height 
stood ready to re-engage in fierce battle, trusting either 
by force or fraud to prosper, and to prevail against 
God and Messiah, or else at last to fall in universal 
ruin: and now disdaining flight or retreat, they drew 
up to final battle, when the great Son of God to his 
army on both sides spoke thus: 

Stand still in bright array, ye saints and here stand 
ye armed angels! rest this day from battle! your war- 
fare hath been faithful, fought without in the righteous 
cause of God, and is accepted by him, as ye have 
received great power, so have ye acted invincibly: 
but the punishment of this cursed crew belongs to 
other hands, for vengeance is God's, or those only 
whom he appoints. Number nor multitude is not or- 
dained to do this day's work: stand only still, and be- 



£38 PARADISE LOST. book vi. 

liold the' indignation of God, poured by me on these 
impious rebels; for it is me they have despised, me 
whom they envied, not you: all their rage is against 
me; because the Father, to whom in heaven appertains 
the supreme kingdom, power, and glory, according to 
his good will hath honoured me: therefore he hath as- 
signed to me to give them their doom; that they may 
have their wish, to try with me which proves the 
strongest in battle, they all united, or I alone against 
them; since they measure every thing by strength, and 
strive not after, or care who outgoes them in goodness 
and other divine perfections. 

Thus spoke the Son of God, and changed his coun- 
tenance into terror, too severe to be beheld, and full of 
wrath rushed upon his enemies. At once the four 
cherubim spread out their wings, that were full of eyes, 
which touching one another made a dreadful shadow, 
and the wheels of his tierce chariot rolled, as with the 
sound of many waters, or the marching of a numerous 
army: he drove directly onward upon his impious foes, 
as gloomy as night; the firm heaven shook throughout 
under his burning wheels, all except the throne of God: 
he soon arrived among them, holding in his right-hand 
ten thousand thunders, which he sent before him, and 
such they were as in their souls fixed many plagues 
and torments: they being quite astonished, lost all 
power of resistance, and all courage, and down drop- 
ped their useless weapons: he rode over shields and 
helmets, with the heads that wore them, of mighty 
powers and seraphim now lying prostrate; who wished 
the mountains might be thrown on them again, to shel- 
ter them from his rage. On the other side, his arrows 
did not fall less tempestuous from the four seraphim, 
who each had four faces, thick set with eyes, and from 
the living wheels, which also were full of eyes; one 
spirit ruled in them all, and every eye blazed lightning. 



chap, in, PARADISE LOST. 239 

and shot forth such hurtful fire among the accursed 
spirits, as withered all their strength, and left them 
spiritless, afflicted, fallen, and drained them of all their 
usual vigour. Yet did not the Son of (rod put forth 
half his strength, hut checked his thunder in the midst 
of its flight; for he did not mean to destroy them, but 
only to drive them out of heaven: those who were 
overthrown he raised up, and like a herd of goats or 
timorous sheep that are flocked together, drove them 
thunderstruck before him to the bounds of heaven, 
which opening wide rolled inward, and discovered a 
great gap into the deep: at that monstrous sight they 
were struck backward with horror; but far worse hor- 
ror urged them behind, so that they threw themselves 
headlong down from the borders of heaven, and eter- 
nal wrath burnt after them to the bottomless pit. Hell 
heard the intolerable noise, and saw heaven falling in 
ruin from heaven, and being affrighted would have fled, 
but fate had bound her too fast, and cast her dark 
foundations too deep. They were nine days in their 
fall, and the confused and roaring Chaos was filled 
with tenfold confusion as they fell, until hell at last 
yawning received them all, and closed upon them; a 
fit habitation for them, full of unquenchable fire, the 
dwelling place of pain and misery. Heaven being quit 
of the burthen rejoiced, and soon shut up the breach 
through which the fallen angels were driven out. 

The Messiah having alone obtained the victory, 
turned his triumphal chariot from the expulsion of his 
enemies; all his saints advanced to meet him with great 
rejoicing, who had stood silent to behold his almighty 
deeds, and as they went shaded with branches of palm, 
each bright order sung songs of triumph, expressing 
him to be the victorious King, the Son, Heir, and Lord, 
and the dominion was given to him, who was worthi- 
est to reign. He rode, thus celebrated, triumphant 



240 



PARADISE LOST. 



BOOK VI, 



through the middle of heaven, into the courts and tem- 
ple of his mighty Father, who sits on the highest 
throne, and who received him into glory, where he 
now dwells at the right-hand of God. 

Thus, Adam, measuring as well as I could things 
in heaven by those on earth, I have at thy request (and 
that thou mayest take heed by what is past) revealed 
to thee, what else perhaps might have been hid from 
the race of Man; the discord and the war which befel 
in heaven among the angelical powers, and the deep 
fall of those too high aspiring spirits, who rebelled 
with Satan: he who now envies thy state, and who is 
now contriving how he may seduce thee also from thy 
obedience, that thou bereaved of happiness mayest par- 
take with him his punishment, which is eternal mise- 
ry; this would be his greatest delight and revenge, as 
in despite against the most High, once to gain thee to 
be the companion of his woe. But do not thou listen 
to his temptations; warn Eve, who in the capacity of 
her mind is weaker than thee: let it be of service to 
thee, to have heard by terrible example, what the re- 
ward of disobedience is; they might have stood firm, 
and yet they fell: do thou bear that in mind, and fear 
to transgress the command laid upon thee. 



THE SEVENTH BOOK 



OF 



PARADISE LOST, 



THE ARGUMENT. 

Raphael, at the request of Adam, relates how and wherefore 
this world was first created; that God after the expelling of 
Satan and his angels out of heaven declared his pleasure to 
create another world, and other creatures to dwell therein. 
God sends his Son with glory and attendance of angels to per- 
form the work of creation in six days: the angels celebrate 
with hymns the performance thereof; and his re-ascension to 
heaven. 



31 



CHAPTER I. 

Raphael tells Adam how and why the world was first created. 

Descend from heaven, thou holy spirit, by some 
called Urania! (a) following whose divine voice, I soar 
above the flights feigned of Pegasus, (b) above the top 
of Olympus. I call upon the meaning, and not the 
name; for thou art not one of the nine muses, nor dost 
thou dwell on mountains, but born in heaven before 
either the hills appeared, or fountains flowed; thou 
didst converse with eternal Wisdom thy sister, and 
with her didst rejoice in the presence of the almighty 
Father, who was pleased with thy heavenly song. Led 
up by thee, I have presumed to visit the heaven of 
heavens, though but an earthly guest, and breathed 
celestial air, tempered by thee to my nature: do thou, 
guiding me down with like safety, return me to my 
natural element, lest I fall (as once Bellerophon (c) did) 

(a) Urania; Lat. Gr. i. e. heavenly; one of the nine muses, 
the goddess of astronomy, and of all heavenly things. She is 
represented crowned with stars, and a great globe in her handsj 
to shew, that she teaches the way to heaven. 

(b) Pegasus; Gr. L e. a fountain; the winged horse of the 
poets: because it is said, he opened the fountain, Hippocrene, 
i. e. the fountain of the horse, by a kick of his heels, and flew 
up to heaven. This was a well of Boetia, near Helicon, dedi- 
cated to Apollo and the muses. 

(c) Bellerophon; Lat. Gr. i. e. a murderer of Seller, his bro- 
ther. Perseus the son of Glaucus king of Corinth is so called. 
He was a noble youth, and after many exploits, being desirous 



£44 PARADISE LOST, book vh, 

dismounted on the Aleian (d) field, there to wander er- 
roneous and forsaken: there yet remains half unsung; 
but now I may sing more safely of narrower bounds 
within the visible diurnal sphere, standing upon the 
earth, and not being carried away beyond this world; 
and though with mortal voice, yet unchanged to hoarse 
or mute; though fallen upon evil days and among evil 
tongues, in darkness, and encompassed round with 
dangers and solitude, yet am I not alone, while thou vis- 
its my slumbers nightly, or at earliest break of day. 
Do thou great spirit still direct and govern my 
thoughts and words, and though but a few, find for me 
a fit audience. But drive far off the levellers of 'Bac- 
chus, the race of that wild rout, that tore Orpheus (e) 
to pieces, in woods where they and rocks (it was said) 
had ears, and were charmed, until the savage clamour 
drowned both harp and voice; nor could his harmony 
defend him: so fail not thou who now implores thee, 
for thou art heavenly, and his feigned muse only an 
empty dream. Teach me to relate what followed, when 
Raphael, the sociable archangel, had forewarned Adam 
to beware of apostasy, or falling away from God into 
sin, by a sad example of what had befell in heaven to 
those apostate angels, lest the like should befall in 
Paradise to him or to his race, if they transgressed and 
slighted that only command, which was so easily obey- 
ed; being only charged not to touch the forbidden tree, 

of flying up to heaven by the help of his horse, was east clown 
headlong by Jupiter; and by the fall he was made blind. Then 
he lived a wandering vagabond life; like another Cain, and 
died with hunger, about A.M. 2693. 

(d) Melon, of Mela; Lat. Gr. i. e. wandering. A field in 
Cilicia, where it is said, that Perseus wandered after his fall 
from heaven. 

(e) Orpheus, was torn in pieces by the Cieonian or Thracian 
women, when they celebrated the feasts of Bacchus, 



chap. i. PARADISE LOST. 24§ 

amidst the choice of all other fruits to please their ap- 
petite with all variety. 

Adam and Eve heard the story of Raphael with great 
attention, and were filled with the highest admiration, 
to hear of things so high and so strange, things as 
had never entered into their thought or imagination, 
that there should be hate in heaven, and war with such 
confusion so near the peace of God in happiness; but 
the evil being soon driven back, fell upon those from 
whom it sprung, it being impossible for it to mix with 
blessedness: so that Adam soon recalled the doubts 
that rose in his heart, and was led on, though without 
sin, with a desire to know things that nearer might con- 
cern him, how this world, heaven, and the visible earth 
first began, when and of what it was created, and for 
what cause; what was done within or without Eden, 
before his memory, about which he proceeded to ask 
his heavenly guest: 

Great things, said he to the angel, and full of won- 
der, far differing from this world, thou hast revealed 
to us, thou divine interpreter! by favour sent down from 
heaven, to forewarn us in time of what, if it had been 
unknown, might have proved our loss; it being what 
human knowledge could not reach; for which we owe 
immortal thanks to God, and receive his admonishing, 
with a solemn purpose to observe his sovereign will 
unchangeably, to which end it is that we are. Eut 
since thou hast condescended, gently to impart to us 
the knowledge of things above earthly thoughts, which 
yet were such things as seemed to God to concern our 
knowing, vouchsafe now to descend lower, and to re- 
late to us (what perhaps may no less avail us to know) 
how this heaven, which we behold so high distant, first 
began, adorned with innumerable moving stars and the 
ambient air -flowing and floating between all bodies, 
yielding to them or filling up all space, and embracing 



%m PARADISE LOST. book vii. 

the earth round: what cause moved the Creator, who 
existed in his holy rest through all eternity, to begin 
so late to create the world, and yet once begun to finish 
it so soon; unfold this to us, if it be not forbidden thee, 
which we inquire after, not to pry into the secrets of 
his eternal power, but that the more we know, the more 
we may magnify his works; and the sun yet wants a 
considerable time of his setting, though he be declin- 
ing, and could he hear thy powerful voice, he would 
stand still to hear thee tell of his creation, and the 
rising birth of nature, from darkness and confusion; or 
if the moon and the stars rise upon thy discourse, night 
will bring silence, and we can gladly keep waking all 
the night until thy story be finished, and thou mayest 
depart yet before morning. 

Thus Adam requested his angelical guest, and thus 
mildly the angel answered: this request of thine, which 
thou hast cautiously asked, obtain also; though what 
words or tongue of seraph is capable of speaking, or 
what heart of man of comprehending the works of the 
Almighty? yet what thou canst attain to, and which may 
best serve to glorify thy Maker, and make thee happier, 
shall not be withheld from thy hearing: such commis- 
sion I have received from above, to answer all thy de- 
sires of knowledge, that are within bounds; beyond those 
forbear to ask, nor hope that thy inventions or conjec- 
tures will discover things which are not revealed, and 
which God, who alone knoweth all things, hath hid, so 
that they may not be communicated either in earth or 
heaven; there is enough besides to search after and to 
learn: but knowledge is like food, and needs no less 
temperance to govern the appetite, to know in what 
measure the mind can well contain and digest, which 
intemperately taken oppresses with surfeit; and wisdom 
turns folly, as too much nourishment turns to wind. 



chap. i. PARADISE LOST. 247 

Know then, that after Lucifer (call him by that name, 
for he was once brighter amidst the host of angels, than 
that bright star is among the stars) fell from heaven 
with his flaming legions through the deep, into the place 
prepared for him, and the great Son of God returned 
victorious with his saints, the almighty and eternal Fa- 
ther beheld their multitude from his throne, and thus 
spake to his Son. 

At least our envious foe hath failed of his purpose, 
who thought all rebellious like himself, by whose aid 
he trusted to have dispossessed us, and to have seized 
this inaccessible high strength, the seat of supreme 
deity, and into the same bad state drew many, who 
have no more place in heaven; yet I see the far great- 
er part have kept their stations, and heaven yet retains 
a sufficient number to possess her realms, and frequent 
this high temple with due services and solemn rites; 
but lest he should be lifted up in his heart for the mis- 
chief he has already done in dispeopling heaven (which 
he vainly imagined a damage done to me) I can repair 
that, and in a moment will create another world, and 
out of one Man an innumerable race of men, to dwell 
there and not here; until at length raised by degrees 
of merit, they open to themselves the way up hither, 
tried under long obedience; and earth be changed to 
heaven, and heaven to earth, becoming one kingdom 
in joy and union without end. Mean while, ye pow- 
ers of heaven! possess the whole, and thou my Word 
and my begotten Son! this I perform by thee; do thou 
speak and let it be done. I send along witli thee my 
over shadowing spirit and my power; ride forth, and 
bid the deep within its appointed bounds be heaven 
and earth: the deep be boundless, because I myself 
till infinity, nor is the space empty any where; and 
though I cannot be circumscribed, jet I can retire, and 
do not put forth ray goodness by constraint, which is 



£48 



PARADISE LOST. 



BOOK VII. 



free to act or not; I am not compelled by necessity or 
chance, for what I will that is fate* 

Thus the Almighty spoke, and what he said, his 
Word, the filial godhead, instantly performed. The 
actions of God are immediate, swifter than time or mo- 
tion, but cannot be told to human ears, so as earthly 
motion may receive any idea without process of speech. 
When the almighty will was heard in such a decla- 
ration, there was great triumph and rejoieing in hea- 
ven: they sung glory to the most High! Good-will to 
future men! and peace in their dwellings! glory to him* 
whose just avenging wrath had driven out the wicked 
from before his sight, and from the habitation of the 
just: glory be to him and praise! whose wisdom had 
ordained to create good out of evil; instead of malig- 
nant spirits, to bring a better race into their room, and 
thence diffuse his goodness to infinite worlds and infi- 
nite ages. Such songs as these the blessed angels 
sung to the glory of God. 



CHAPTER II. 



God sends his &on to perform the work of creation; which the 
angels celebrate: his re-ascension into heaven. 

Mean while the Son of God appeared on his 
great expedition, having almighty power, and being 
crowned with divine majesty, wisdom, and infinite 
love, and all his Father shone in him: about his cha- 
riot there thronged innumerable cherubim and sera- 
phim, potentates, and thrones, and virtues; winged 
spirits, and chariots from the armory of God with 
wings, where thousands stand lodged between two 
brazen mountains, heavenly equipage, and always ready 



chap. ii. PARAlHSE LOST. 249 

harnessed against a solemn day, and now came forth 
attendant upon their Lord of their own accord, for 
spirit lived within them; Heaven opened her everlast- 
ing gates wide, moving upon golden hinges, to let forth 
the King of glory, in his powerful word and spirit 
coming to create new worlds. They stood upon the 
ground of heaven, and viewed from the shore the vast 
and immeasurable abyss, which was as outrageous as 
a sea turned up from the bottom by furious winds; rais- 
ing up the surging waves like mountains, which would 
seem wildly to assault the height of heaven, and mix 
the centre with the pole. 

The Word, by whom all things were made, called 
out and said: Ye troubled waves be silent, and be at 

peace thou great deep! be no longer at strife. This 

saying, he stayed not, but lifted up upon the wings of 
cherubim in the glory of his Father, rode far into Cha- 
os, and the unmade world; for the Chaos had obeyed 
his voice. All his train followed him in bright pro- 
cession, to behold the creation and the wonders of his 
power. Then stayed the motion of his chariot wheels 
and took the golden compasses into his hand, which 
are prepared in the everlasting stores of God, to cir- 
cumscribe this universe, and all things that are created. 
One foot of the compasses he fixed in the centre, and 
turned the other round in the vast dark depth, and 
said, O world! let this be thy just circumference, and 
thus far extend thy bounds! 

Thus (rod created the heaven and the earth, and 
the first matter was without form and void, and dark- 
ness covered the deep: but the Spirit of God moved 
upon the waters, and infused vital warmth and virtue 
through all the fluid parts, but purged downward all 
the black, cold, and gross dregs, that were enemies to 
life; then laid the foundation of all things, and gather- 
ed together like things to like, so that the elements 

33 



250 PARADISE LOST. book vii. 

were separated in their several places, and earth hung 
self-balanced upon her own centre. 

God said, let there be light! and heavenly light, the 
first of things, pure quintessence, sprung from the deep, 
and began to pass from her native east through the 
gloomy air, and being inclosed in a bright cloud, 
dwelt a while in a shady tabernacle (for as yet the 
sun was not) God saw that the light was good, and 
by the hemisphere divided the light from the darkness; 
and God called the light day, and the darkness he 
called night, and the evening and the morning were 
the first day: nor did it pass uncelebrated or unsung 
by the angels, when they beheld shining light first ex 
haling from darkness, in the day that heaven and earth 
were made: they filled the universe with shouts of joy, 
and played upon golden harps, praising God and his 
works with hymns; they sung his praise both when 
the first evening was and the first morning. 

And God said, let there be a firmament in the midst 
of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the 
waters. And God made the firmament of expanded air, 
liquid, pure, transparent, and elemental, diffused and 
extended to the uttermost parts of this new creation; 
which was a firm and sure partition, dividing the waters 
underneath from those above: for he built the world 
like the earth floating in a calm, wide, pure sky, far 
removed from the mass of the mixed elements; lest fierce 
extremes being too near, might damage thewhole frame; 
and he named the firmament heaven: so the evening and 
the morning were the second day. 

The earth was new formed, but involved as yet in 
the great mass ol water, and not yet thoroughly prepar- 
ed, did not appear: the main ocean flowed all over the 
earth, not without virtue, but softening all her globe with 
warm prolific humour, fermented the earth, now full of 
kindly moisture to conceive; when God said, let the wa- 
ters be gathered together, and to one place, and let the 



chap. ii. PARADISE LOST. 251 

dry land appear! immediately the great mountains ap- 
peared, rising up above the water, and lifted their tops 
into the clouds, as high as the hills rose, so low sunk 
down a holloAV bottom, broad and deep, a proper recep- 
tacle for the waters; thither they flowed swiftly, part 
rising in a crystal wall or direct ridge for haste; such 
flight the great command had impressed on the floods: 
as armies at the sound of the trumpet (which, as thou 
hast heard me speak of our armies, thou understandest 
something of) make up to their standard: so the waters 
wave after wave, wherever they found way; if steep, 
they flowed with rapid torrent; if through plains, ebbing 
softly; nor could rock or hill withstand them; but they, 
either under ground, or in wide circuit winding and 
wandering, at last arrive at the place designed for 
them, and wore deep channels upon the washy and slimy 
ooze; which was very easy for to do, before God 
had bid the ground be dry; (except within those banks 
where the rivers now continually flow.) And God 
called the dry land earth, and the gathering together 
of the waters he called seas; and God saw that it was 
good. And God said, let the earth bring forth grass, 
and the harp yielding seed, and the fruit tree yielding 
fruit after her kind, whose seed is in herself upon the 
earth! He had scarcely spoke, when the earth (which 
until then was bare, barren, unsightly, and without 
beauty) brought forth the tender grass, whose verdure 
covered her all over with a pleasant green: then all 
sorts of herbs smelling sweet, and opening with flow- 
ers of various colours, suddenly appeared: and before 
these were well blown, forth flourished the thick clus- 
tering vine; forth crept all kinds of smelling gourds, 
reeds, bushes, and humble shrubs; lastly arose the 
stately trees, and spread their branches hung with 
plenty of fruit, or else gave forth their beautiful buds 
and blossoms: the hills were covered with high woods, 
and the valleys with green turf, and each fountain and 



252 PARADISE LOST. book vii. 

river side with borders of flowers; that now the earth 
seemed like heaven, a habitation where gods might 
dwell, or love to wander in witji delight, and frequent 
such sacred shades: though God had not yet caused it 
to rain upon the earth, and Man was not as yet to till 
it, but there went up a mist from the earth, and water- 
ed all the ground and each plant of the field; which 
God made before it was in the earth, and every herb 
before it grew upon the green stem; and God saw that 
it was good: so the evening and the morning were the 
third day, 

The Almighty spoke again, and said; let there be 
lights high in the firmament of heaven, to divide the 
day from the night; and let them be for sings, for sea- 
sons, and for clays, and for revolving years; and let 
them be for lights, as I ordain their office in the firma- 
ment, to give light upon the earth; and it was so. And 
God made two great lights; (if not great with regard 
to other bodies, yet so for their use to Man) the greater 
to rule over the day, and the lesser to rule the night, 
and each by turns divide light from darkness. God 
overlooking his great work, saw that it was good; for 
of the celestial bodies he first made the sun (a very 
great globe) which though of ethereal matter was with- 
out any light: then made the moon, another great 
globe, and stars of every degree of magnitude, with 
which he filled the firmament, thick as seeds are 
sown in the field. He took the greater part of light, 
transplanting it from the cloud, in which at its first 
creation it was placed, and removed it into the sun's 
orb, being made porous to receive and take it in, and 
yet firm so as to retain its gathered beams, it being now 
the great repository of light: hither the stars repairing, 
as to a fountain, draw additional light, and from hence 
the morning star gathers more brightness; and though 
seen with great diminution, being so far remote from 






chap. ii. PARADISE LOST. 253 

human sight, they augment their own peculiar light, 
either by tincture or reflection. The glorious sun was 
first seen in the east, ruling the day, and invested all 
the horizon round with bright rays, cheerfully seem- 
ing to run his course through the high course of hea- 
ven; the morning star and other constellations moving 
w r ith him, shedding sweet influence. The moon was 
set opposite in the levelled west, less bright than the 
sun, as his mirror, with full face, borrowing her light 
from him; for in that aspect she needed no other; and 
still keeps that distance until night; then she shines 
in the east, in her turn, revolving on heaven's great 
axle, and holds her reign, dividing it with thousands 
of lesser lights, a thousand thousand stars, that then 
appeared shining in the hemisphere, then first adorned 
with these bright luminaries, that set and rose: and the 
evening and the morning were the fourth day. 

And God said, let the waters bring forth abundant- 
ly the moving creature that hath life, reptiles, with 
spawn abundant, and let the fowl fly above the earth, 
with wings in the open firmament! and (rod created 
great whales, (/) and every living creature that mov- 
eth, which the waters brought forth abundantly after 
their kind, and every winged fowl after his kind: and 
God saw that it was good, and blessed them, saying, 
Be fruitful, multiply, and fill the seas, lakes, and run- 
ning streams! and let all sorts of fowls of the air in- 
crease also. Forthwith the seas, the sounds, ami every 
creek and bay swarm with innumerable fry, and shoals 
offish, that with their fins and shining scales swim under 
the waves in multitudes, large enough to make banks 
in the ocean: part single, or with mates, graze upon 

(/) Whale*} Sax. 0. E. Thehugest creatures in the sea, as 
elephants are on the dry land: they are mentioned in particular, 
Gen. i. 21. " And God created great whales, and every living 
** creature that moveth, which the waters brought forth abun- 
" dantly after their kind," 



£54 



PARADISE LOST. 



BOOK VII. 



the sea- weed, their pasture; or sporting among coral 
shew their beautiful scales of various colours, mixed 
with gold, to the sun; or else lying at ease in their 
pearly shells, attend moist nourishment; or under 
rocks, covered with shells like armour, watch for their 
food; the dolphins (g) and seals play upon the calm 
seas, while other larger iish wallowing unwieldy, and 
prodigious in their motion, make a tempest as they 
swim; there the leviathan, hugest of living creatures, 
sleeps or swims on the sea, stretched like a promon- 
tory, and seems a moving land, drawing in and spout- 
ing out a sea from his gills. Mean while the warm 
caves, and fens, and shores hatch their brood as nu- 
merous, from all kinds of eggs, that bursting disclose 
their callow young; but being soon feathered and soar- 
ing the lofty air, rise far above the ground, making a 
great noise with their wings: there the eagle and the 
stork (h) build their nests, on cliffs and the tops of ce- 
dars; part loosely %ing, and part more wise, led on 
by others, and ranged in order, and knowing the sea- 

(g) Dolphins, from JDelpi; Lat. from the Gr.. because the peo- 
ple of Delphi first discovered this fish; or Beiphax, Gr. i. e. an 
hog: because it resembles one in its long snout, fatness, ribs, 
liver and entrails. It is called the sea-hog, and the sacred fish; 
because it was consecrated to Neptune. A Dolphin is a large 
fish, not unlike a Porpoise, very straight, and the swiftest of 
all fishes or birds; as swift as an arrow; it will overtake a ship 
in full sail before the wind; and continually in motion. It 
doth live twenty or thirty years, and three or four days out of 
water, as an eel doth. Dolphins are said to be lovers of men. 
It is a certain sign of a tempest, when they sport on the water. 
Their flesh was of great request among the ancients. They 
have no gall. , 

(h) Stork; Sax. Gr. Hcb. Chahdah, i. e. kindness or natural 
affection: because that bird hath a great love to its young; and 
they to the old ones. A fowl bigger than a common heron, 
with a white head, neck, belly, tail and fore part; but black in 
the back, with broad claws, like the nails of a man. 



chap. ii. PARADISE LOST. 355 

sons, set forth in large flocks high over seas and 
lands, easing one another in their flight; so the prudent 
crane (i) steers yearly her voyage, whilst the air is 
fanned with numberless wings. The smaller birds, 
flying from branch to branch, sung in the woods until 
evening; nor even then did the solemn nightingale 
cease warbling, but tuned her soft song all the night. 
Others bathed their downy breasts upon pure and clear 
lakes and rivers; the swan with her arched neck mant- 
ling proudly between her white wings, rows herself 
along in state, her feet serving for oars; yet they often 
quit the water, and rising on the wing take their flight 
through the air. Others walked firm upon the ground, 
such as the crested cock, whose throat proclaims the 
hours of the night; and the peacock, whose gay train 
adorns him, tinged with all the colours of the rainbow^ 
and having his tail filled with glittering eyes like stars. 
The waters thus replenished with fish, and the air 
with fowl, the evening and the morning were the fifth 
day. 

The sixth and last day of the creation arose with 
evening and morning song; when God said, let the earth 
bring forth the living creature after his kind, cattle, and 
creeping things, and beasts of the earth each in their 
kind! the earth obeyed, and strait opening her fruitful 
womb, at one birth brought forth living creatures with- 
out number, forms perfectly limbed and full grown; out 
of the ground arose wild beasts, as from a den, in forest, 

(i) Crane; Sax. O. E. A name formed from its sound. A 
bird of passage, celebrated by the prophet, for her observing; 
the fit time of coming and going from one country to another. 
Jer. viii. 7. " Yea, the stork in the heaven knoweth her ap- 
*'- pointed times, and the crane, and the swallow observe the 
" time of their coming." It is a bird with a very long bill, 
neck and legs; sometimes weighing ten pounds; and is a water 
fowl resorting in fens. 



256 PARADISE LOST. book vii, 

thicket, or brake, where they had been used to shelter; 
they rose in pairs among the trees, and the cattle walk- 
ed in the fields and green meadows: the wild beasts few 
in number, and solitary; but the tame cattle sprung up 
at once, pastering in flocks and great herds. The grassy 
clods brought forth, and now the tawny lion appeared 
half through the earth, pawing to get his hinder parts 
free; then springs as if broke loose from bonds, and 
rearing up on his hind legs shakes his flowing mane: the 
leopard and the tyger rising like the mole, threw the 
crumbled earth above them like hillocks: the swift stag 
bore up his branching head from under ground, and the 
behemoth, or elephant (the greatest creature of the earth, 
as the leviathan or whale is of the sea) with difficulty 
heaved up his vast bulk from the mould: the flocks rose 
bleating, and with their fleeces full grown, and complete 
in all their parts, just like plants: amphibious creatures, 
such as the crocodile, (Jc) and all those of whom it is un- 

(Jc) Crocodile; Lat. Gr. i. e. yellow; because it is of a yellow 
colour; or because it hateth the smell and taste of saffron, which 
is yellow. A huge, voracious and very strong, but timorous 
beast, in the Nile, Ganges, &c. living equally upon land and wa- 
ter; as our geese, ducks, otters, &c. Its jaws are wide enough to 
swallow a man whole, full of teeth. It is the only beast that 
hath no tongue, sixty bones or joints in the back. The upper 
skin is firm hard, and impenetrable with any dart, spear or 
shot, no not with a loaded cart; and therefore scaly is a proper 
epithet; but it may be wounded in the belly. It swims with 
the feet and fins, which are upon the tail; but is very slow in 
its pace; because the feet are short. The tail is near as long 
as the whole body. It lays its eggs in the sand or earth, and 
brings forth its young every year. Its eggs are as big as a goosed, 
and it lays one every day for sixty days. It is thought that 
they live 100 years, and are generally thirty feet long. In 
Panama some of them are 100 feet long. An alligator, is only 
a young crocodile. The old Egyptians worshipped this beast, 
out of fear; or for the benefit, which it did to them: for it de- 
fended their country from the incursions of the wild Arabs, 



aHAP. n. PARADISE LOOT. 257 

certain, whether they owe most of their original to the 
sea or land. At once came forth insect and worm, 
whatever creeps the ground; some of which have wings, 
and though their parts are so very small, they are as 
completely formed and as exactly put together as those 
of larger animals, decked in their summer's pride, be- 
ing spotted with gold, purple, and all manner of co- 
lours; while the worms drew their long dimensions like 
a line, streaking the ground as they passed aloug: not all 
little or inconsiderable creatures; but some of the serpent 
kind, of wonderful length and bigness, that besides their 
power to creep and roll along the ground, had wings 
to fly with. First crept the industrious and parsimo- 
nious ant, being provident for the future, having a large 
heart enclosed in small room: next appeared the fe- 
male bee swarming, that feeds the drone, (I) and builds 
her cell of wax stored with honey. The rest are with- 
out number, and thou knowest their nature, for thou 
gavest them names; which makes it needless to repeat 
them to thee. Nor are serpents (some of which are 
very large, having bright shining eyes and terrible 
crests) unknown to thee; being (notwithstanding their 
appearance, and that they are the subtlest beasts of all 
the field) unhurtful, and obedient to thy call. 

Now heaven shined in full glory, and rolled in her 
motions, and the first great Mover's hands had directed 
their course. Earth in her rich attire, was finished, 

who durst not pass the Red sea for fear of those voracious 
heasts. They made it also a symbol of impudence in their hie- 
roglyphics. They are scaree now in the Nile, and the people 
of Florida have continual wars with them. 

(1) Drone; Sax. O. E. A wasp or male bee, without a sting, 
who propagates the species, but cannot gather honey, for want 
of it. Therefore he sits and hatches the brood, keeps the eggs 
warm, while the female bees gather the honey abroad; and does 
not stir from the brood till they come home frauglited with ho- 
oey, and so discharge him. 
33 



258 



PARADISE LOST. 



BOOK VII, 



and looked lovely; the air was flown by all kinds 
of fowl; the water swum by all kinds offish; the earth 
walked by all kinds of beasts; and all was full, ex- 
cepting what remained to be created this day: the mas- 
ter-piece was yet wanting, the very end for which all 
the rest was done; a creature, who was not to look 
downward to the earth like the other creatures, but 
being endowed with reason shining in the human soul 
might know himself; erect his stature, and with a se- 
rene and upright face govern the rest, and thence con- 
scious of his own dignity exalt his mind, and have his 
conversation in heaven; but yet be grateful to acknow- 
ledge from whence his good descends, and thither, with 
heart, voice and eyes, directed in devotion, to adore 
and worship the supreme God of all, who made him. 
the chief of all his works: therefore the almighty and 
eternal Father (for he was here, as he is every where, 
present) thus distinctly spoke to his Son: 

Now let us make mankind, in our image, and after 
our likeness; and let them have dominion over the fish 
of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the 
cattle, and over every beast of the field, and all the earth, 
and every creeping thing that creeps upon the earth! 

Having said this, Adam, he formed thee, a Man, out 
of the dust of the ground, and breathed into thy nostrils 
the breath of life: he created thee in his own image, 
expressing it in thee: and thou becamest a living soul: 
he created thee male and thy consort Eve female, that 
from you both might proceed the race of Man; then 
blessed you, and said, Be fruitful and multiply, and re- 
plenish the earth, and subdue it; and have dominion 
over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, 
and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth, 
wheresoever created; for no place is yet distinguished 
by name. From thence, as thou already knowest, lie 
brought thee into this delicious and pleasant garden, 



chap. ii. PARADISE LOST. 259 

where are trees, delightful both to behold and taste, of 
his own planting, and freely gave thee all their plea- 
sant fruits for food; (for here is a variety without end, 
all sorts that the earth yields) but of the tree, which 
being tasted gives the knowledge of good and evil, 
thou mayest not eat; for in the day that thou eatest, 
thou diest; it is Death is the punishment decreed: be- 
ware! and govern thy appetite well, lest Sin, and her 
sure attendant Death, surprise thee. 

Here God finished the creation, and viewed all that 
he had made, and behold! all was entirely good; and 
the evening and the morning were the sixth day. God, 
the Creator, desisting from his work, though not wea- 
ried, returned up to his high abode the heaven of hea- 
vens, to behold from thence this new created world, 
being a new addition to his empire, how good and 
how fair it shewed in prospect from his throne, answer- 
ing his great idea; lie rode up, followed with accla- 
mations, the symphonious sounds often thousand harps^ 
that tuned angelical harmony: (thou mayest remem- 
ber for thou heardest.) The earth and the air resound- 
ed, and heaven and all the constellations echoed to 
them; the planets as it were stood listening, while 
God and the angels ascended with joy and great pomp. 
They sung aloud, ' Open ye everlasting gates! open 
ye heavens your living doors! let in the great Creator, 
magnificently returned from his work of six days, and 
that work is a world: open, and henceforth open often! 
for God will vouchsafe (being pleased with the actions 
of just men) often to visit their dwellings, and with fre- 
quent intercourse will send thither his angels, upon 
messages of grace.' 

Thus the glorious angels sung, as they ascended with 
the Creator into heaven: the Son of God led directly 
the way through heaven to the eternal mansion of God. 
Now the seventh evening arose in Eden, for the sun 



%m 



PARADISE LOST. 



BOCK vij v 



was set, and twilight foreruning the night eame on 
from the earth; when he arrived at the holy mount of 
heaven, the imperial throne of Grod, which is fixed firm 
for ever and sure, where he sat him down with his great 
Father: for he also went invisible, though he staved 
(such privilege hath omnipresence) for he ordained the 
work, being the author and end of all things; and now 
resting from his work, he blessed and hallowed the 
seventh day: but it was not kept in silence; the harp 
did not rest, the solemn pipe and dulcimer, all sorts of 
organs, and all stringed instruments played soft tunes, 
intermixed with joyful chorus, or voice of single song: 
clouds of incense, smoking censers of gold hid the 
mountain; and the song which they sung was of the 
creation, the work of six days. 

Great are thy works! they cried, O infinite Jehovah! 
and very great thy power! what thought can compre- 
hend thee, or what tongue relate thee! greater now in 
thy return, than from the expulsion of the rebelling 
angels: that day thy thunders made thee great; but to 
create is greater than to destroy that which is already 
created. Who can lessen thee, thou mighty King! or 
set limits to thy power? thou hast easily repelled the 
proud attempt of the apostate spirits; while they im- 
piously thought to diminish thy glory, and draw from 
thee the number of thy worshippers! who endeavours 
to weaken thee, serves against his own purpose, the 
more to manifest thy might: thou makest use of his 
evil, from whence to create more good, of which this 
new made world, which is like another heaven, is 
proof; not far from the gates of heaven, founded in the 
great space, with numerous stars, and every star per- 
haps destined to be a habitable world; but thou know- 
est their seasons: among these earth circumfused with 
the ocean, the seat of men, and their pleasant dwelling 
place. Thrice happy men, and happy the sons of men, 



chap. ii. PARADISE LOST. 261 

whom God hath advanced thus! created in his image 
to dwell there, and worship him, and given him as a 
reward to rule over his works on earth, in sea, or the 
air, and to multiply a race of worshippers, that may 
be holy and just: thrice happy they, if they will but 
persevere in uprightness, and know their own happi- 
ness! 

Thus they sung, and all heaven was full of hallelu- 
jahs: thus was that great Sabbath (m) kept. And now 
I have fulfilled thy request, that asked how this world 
and the appearance of things began, and what was 
done from the beginning before thy remembrance; that 
posterity being informed by thee might also know. If 
thou desirest to know any thing further, surpassing thy 
present knowledge as a Man, speak, and if it be per- 
mitted I shall inform thee. 

(m) Sabbath; Heb. i. e. a rest. This was the first Sabbatk 
instituted by God. 



THE EIGHTH BOOK 



OF 



PARADISE LOST. 



THE ARGUMENT. 

Adam inquires concerning celestial motions; is doubtfully an- 
swered, and exhorted to search rather after things more 
worthy of knowledge. Adam assents to the advice of Ra- 
phael, and being still desirous to detain him, relates to him 
what he remembered since his own creation; his being placed 
in Paradise, and talking with God concerning solitude 
and fit society. Adam relates his first meeting and nuptials 
with Eve; his discourse with the angel thereupon, who after 
repeated admonitions departs. 



CHAPTER I. 

Adam inquires concerning celestial motions; is doubtfully an- 
sivered, and exhorted to search rather after things more wor- 
thy of knowledge. 

The angel ended his discourse, and his voice re- 
mained still so charming in the ear of Adam, that he 
for a while thought him still speaking, and continued 
attentive to hear; then like one newly awakened from 
sleep, made this grateful answer: 

Divine historian! what thanks or recompense sufficient, 
or equal to thy goodness, have I to render thee! who 
thus largely hath allayed the thirst I had of knowledge, 
and vouchsafed in such friendly condescension to relate 
things, hy me else unsearchable, and now heard with 
great wonder, but great delight; and (as is due) with 
glory attributed to the high Creator. Yet I have some 
doubts remaining, which can alone be cleared up by 
thee. 

When I behold this fair frame the world, consisting 
of heaven and earth, and compute their magnitude; this 
earth being but a spot, a grain of sand, an atom, com- 
pared with the firmament, and the prodigious number of 
stars that are therein, that seem to roll incomprehensible 
spaces (as their distance argues, and their daily and swift 
return witnesses) merely to bring light round this dark 
earth, this little spot, only to bring one day and one 
night in all their vast survey, and be useless besides: 
when I reason, I often admire wise and frugal nature 

34} 



26G 



PARADISE LOST. 



BOOK VIII. 



could act such disproportions; to create superfluously 
so many nobler and much greater bodies, to this one 
use; for any thing which appears to the contrary, and 
and impose upon their orbs such restless revolutions, 
repeated every day; while (he earth remaining without 
motion (that might move better, and in far less compass) 
being attended by bodies more noble than herself, at- 
tains her end, and does not move at ail, and receives 
as tribute her warmth and light, brought to her from 
such great distance, and with such incredible swiftness, 
as is not to be described. 

Our first father spoke thus, and seemed by his coun- 
tenance entering into abstruse and studious thoughts; 
which when Eve perceived, she rose from her seat, 
where she sat at some distance, though in sight, and 
(with lowliness; yet with such dignity and grace, as 
whoever saw could not but wish she would stay) 
went forth among her fruits and flowers to see how 
they throve; for they were her nursery, budding and 
blooming under her tendance and care. Yet she did 
not go, as not being delighted with such discourse, or 
that her ear was not capable of hearing arguments upon 
the highest subjects, but she reserved such pleasure 
when Adam should relate it to her, when they should 
be by themselves; she preferred her husband to be the 
relater before the angel, and chose rather to ask of him; 
she new he would mix his discourse with agreeable 
digressions, and solve high dispute with conjugal ca- 
resses; for it was not words alone from his lips that 
pleased her. (When meet now pairs so joined in love 
and mutual honour?) she went forth with a demeanour 
like a goddess, and not unattended, for a pomp of win- 
ning graces waited on her as a queen, and created de- 
sire in all eyes, to wish to have her still in sight. And 
"Raphael made this benevolent reply to the doubt pro- 
posed hj Adam, 



chap. i. PARADISE LOST. 26/ 

I do not blame thee for inquiring or searching, ftp hea- 
ven is as the book of God set before thee, wherein thou 
mayest read his wonderous works, and learn his sea- 
sons, hours, days, months, or years. To attain this, 
if thou judge aright, it signifies nothing to know whe- 
ther heaven moves, or the earth; the rest the great Ar- 
chitect did wisely to conceal from Man or angel; and 
not divulge his secrets to be canvassed by them, who 
ought only to admire: or if they have a mind to con- 
jecture, he hath left his fabric of the heavens to their 
disputes, perhaps to see the weakness of their strange 
opinions hereafter; when they come to model heaven, 
and to compute the motions, distance, and situation of 
the stars, how they will govern the mighty frame; how 
build, unbuild, and contrive to save appearances; (a) 
how incumber the sphere with centric and ex centric, 
with cycle (b) and epicycle, (c) orb (d) within orb: 
thus I guess already by thy reasoning, who art to lead 
thy offspring, and suppose st, that bright and greater 
bodies should not serve the lesser that are not bright, 

(«) Appearances; Fr. Lat. An astrolog. term. The risings, 
motions, places and influences of the planets. Here is a strong 
and pleasant confutation of judiciary astrology, with some of 
its absurd terms, by way of a digression. 

(6) Cycle; Lat. Gr. i. e. a circle. An astrol. term. A contin- 
ual revolution of planets, which goeth on from the first number 
to the last without any interruption; and then returns to the 
last, as the cycle of the sun, <$*c. 

(c) Epicycle; Lat. Gr. i. e. a circle above a circle. An astro - 
log. term. A lesser circle, whose centre is in the circumference 
of the greater circle, i. e. one cycle within another, or orb in 
orb, as planets, having their centre different from the centre of 
the earth, 8fc. 

(d) Orb; Fr. Lat. An astron. term. An hollow sphere or 
globe, used by astronomers and astrologers to demonstrate the 
motions, and distances of places. Globes or spheres were first 
invented by Archimedes, an excellent mathematician of Sicily, 
about A.M. 3730. 



268 



PARADISE LOST. 



BOOK VIII. 



nor run such journeys through heaven, the earth all 
the while sitting still, and alone receiving the benefit. 
First consider, that greatness or brightness does not 
imply excellence: the earth, though not glistering and 
being so small in comparison of heaven, may contain 
more plenty of solid good than the sun, that though it 
shines is barren, whose virtue works no effect upon it- 
self, but in the fruitful earth; there his beams (which 
would be otherwise unactive) when they are received, 
first find their vigour. Yet it is not to the earth that 
those bright luminaries do their office, but to thee, the 
earth's inhabitant: and for the wide circuit of heaven, 
let it speak the high magnificence of the Maker, who 
built so spaciously, and stretched out his line so far, 
that Man may know he dwells in an edifice too large 
for him to fill; that he is lodged in a small partition; 
and that the rest is ordained to uses best known to his 
Lord. Attribute the swiftness of those numberless cir- 
cles to his omnipotence, that could add to material 
substances speed almost spiritual. Me thou wilt not 
think slow, who since the morning set out from heaven, 
where God resides, and before noon arrived in Eden; 
a distance not to be expressed by any numbers that 
have name; but this I urge, admitting motion in the 
heavens, to shew that invalid which moved thee to 
doubt it; not that I affirm it to be so, though it seems 
so to thee, who hast thy dwelling upon earth. God 
being minded to remove his ways from human sense, 
placed heaven so far from earth, that if earthly sight 
should presume to pry, it might err in things that are 
too high, and gain no advantage. What if the sun 
should be the centre to the world, and other stars, in- 
cited by their own and his attractive virtue, move about 
him in various circles? in six of them thou seest their 
wandering course, sometimes high, sometimes low; 
then hid, then progressive; then going backwards, or 



chap. i. PARADISE LOST. 269 

standing still; (that is, in appearance) and what if the 
seventh to these, this planet the earth (seemingly so 
stedfast) hath three (e) different motions insensibly? 
which else thou must ascribe to several spheres, moved 
contrary wise and with indirect motions: or save the 
sun his labour, and that swift daily and nightly revo- 
lution supposed invisible about the stars; which has 
no need of thy belief, if the earth moving towards 
the east bring the day, and her other opposite part 
turning from the sun meet night: what if earth's light, 
sent from the earth through the wide transparent air, 
be as a star to the moon, reciprocally enlightening her 
by day, and her inhabitants (if inhabitants are there) 
as she by night does this earth? thou seest her spots 
like clouds, and clouds may rain, and rain may pro- 
duce fruits in her softened soil, allotted there for some 
to eat; and perhaps thou or thy posterity may discover 
other suns communicating dazzling lights, and other 
moons communicating weaker lights, each orb perhaps 
filled with living inhabitants: for it remains very open 
to dispute, that such a vast part of the universe should 
be uninhabited by living souls, and be desert and de- 
solate, and serve only to shine; yet scarcely to contri- 
bute each orb one glimpse of light, when conveyed 
down so far as this habitable earth, which again re- 
turns light back to them. But whether these things 
are thus, or not; whether the sun, above all, rise on the 
earth, or earth rise on the sun; or whether he begin his 
road from the east, or she advance her silent course from 
the west, do not thou be anxious to know things which 
are hid from thee; but leave them to God above, and 
serve and fear him: let him dispose of other creatures 
wherever he has placed them, as pleases him best; do 
thou enjoy what he hath given to thee, that is this Para- 

(e) Three, i. e. the diurnal; the annual and the motion on her 
own axis. 



270 PARADISE LOST. book vih. 

dise, and thy beautiful Eve: heaven is too high for thee 
to know what passes there; be humbly wise; think 
only of what concern thee and thy being; do not dream 
about other worlds, what creatures may live there, or 
if living there, what may be their state, condition, or 
degree: rest contented, that thus much hath been re- 
vealed to thee, not only things belonging to this earth, 
but many concerning the highest heaven. 



CHAPTER II. 

Jldam assents to the advice of Raphael, and being still desirous 
to detain him, relates whdt he remembered since his own crea* 
Hon* 

By the speech of the angel, Adam being cleared 
of all doubts, made this reply? 

Serene angel! pure intelligence of heaven! how fully 
hast thou satisfied, freed from intricacies, and taught 
me to live the best and easiest way! not to interrupt 
the sweets of life with perplexing thoughts, which God 
hath bid to keep far off from us, and not molest us; 
unless we ourselves, with wandering minds and vain 
motions, seek them out: but the soul or the fancy is 
apt to rove unchecked, to which there is no bound; until 
advised or taught by experience, she learn, that not to 
know at large of obscure things, full of subtility, and 
remote from use, but to know that which lies before us 
in daily life, is the first wisdom; what is more is but 
a vapour, emptiness, or triiling, and renders us un- 
practised, unprepared, and still to seek in things that 
most concern us. Therefore let us descend from these 
high subjects to those of a lower nature, and speak of 
things which are near to us, and of use; whence men- 



chap. II. PARADISE LOST. 271 

tion may perhaps be made of something, which by thy 
permission and wonted condescension may not be un- 
seasonable to inquire about. 

I have heard thee relate what was done before my 
remembrance: now hear me relate my story, which 
perhaps thou hast never yet heard, and the day is not 
yet spent; until then thou seest Iioav I contrive to de- 
tain thee, inviting thee to give audience while I speak; 
which I can only excuse by saying, that I do it, only 
hoping to hear thy reply. For I seem in heaven while 
I sit with thee, and thy discourse is sweeter to my ear, 
than the fruit of the palm tree (at the hour of sweet re- 
past) is to the taste, though pleasant both to hunger 
and thirst; that satiates soon and fills, but thy words, 
endowed with divine grace, bring no surfeit with their 
sweetness. To whom thus Raphael answered, with 
heavenly meekness: 

Father of Mankind! think not that thy lips are inca- 
pable of speaking things pleasant to hear, or that thy 
tongue is without eloquence; for God hath also poured 
his gifts abundantly on thee, and made thee bo h in- 
wardlv and outwardlv his own fair imaare: all comli- 
ncss and grace attend thee, and form each word or 
motion; nor do we in heaven think less of thee upon 
earth, than of our own fellow servant, and we gladly 
inquire into the ways of God with Man; for God we 
see hath honoured thee, and set his love uoon Man 
equal with the angels: therefore speak on, for on the 
day of Man's creation it befell that 1 was absent, bound 
upon an obscure and uncouth voyage, out upon excur- 
sion towards the gates of hell, with many legions of 
angels (for we had such a command) to see that none 
issued forth from thence, either as an enemy or a spy, 
while God was in his great work; lest he (incensed if 
such bold eruption had been made) might have mixed 
destruction with creation: not that they durst attempt 



%J% PARADISE LOST. book vih, 

any such thing, without his permission; hut he sends 
us to execute his high commands (as being the sove- 
reign King) to exercise his power, and inure us to rea- 
dy obedience: we found the dismal gates fast shut, and 
strongly barricaded; but long before we approached 
them, we heard a noise far different from the voice of 
joy, loud lamentations and furious rage, the effect of 
torment: we returned gladly up to heaven before the 
evening of the Sabbath, for so we had in charge to do. 
But now begin thy relation, for I attend, as much 
pleased with thy words as thou art with mine. 

So spoke the angel, and thus in reply Adam: It is 
hard for Man to tell how human life began; for who knew 
himself begining? but desire still to converse longer 
with thQG, first induced me to speak. 1 found my- 
self lying upon the grass, as if new waked from sound 
sleep, and in a gentle sweat, which the sun soon dried 
with his beams. Straight I turned my wandering eyes 
towards heaven, and gazed a while at the spacious sky; 
until raised by quick motion, I sprung upward (as 
naturally desirous, and endeavouring to go thither) and 
stood upright upon my feet: round about me I saw hills, 
dales, woods, and running streams, and by these, crea- 
tures that lived and moved, and walked or else flew; 
birds were singing on the branches, all things looked 
pleasant and full of sweetness, and my own heart over- 
flowed with joy. Then I considered myself, and sur- 
veyed me, limb by limb; sometimes I walked, some- 
times, as lively vigour prompted me, I ran; but I knew 
not who I was, or where, or from what cause: I tried 
to speak, and immediately I spoke; my tongue could 
readily name whatever I saw. Thou sun, said I, fair 
light! and thou, the enlightened earth! so fresh and 
fine! ye hills, and valleys! ye plains, woods, and rivers! 
and ye that live and move, all ye fair creatures! tell me 
(if ye saw) how I came here? — not of myself. Then 



shap. ii. PARADISE LOST. 273 

by some great maker, pre-eminent in goodness, and in 
power: tell me, how I may know him, how adore 
him, from whom I have this power of motion and this 
life, and feel that I am happier than I yet know. While 
I called thus and wandered, I did not know whither, 
from the place where I first drew breath, and first 
beheld this happy light, and none returning answer, 
I sat me down pensive on a green shady bank, covered 
with flowers; there gentle sleep first came upon me, and 
with soft oppression seized my drowsy untroubled 
senses (though I then thought I was passing to my 
former state, that I was going to become again insensL 
ble, and forthwith be in a state of dissolution) when 
suddenly there appeared to me a dream, which gently 
moved my fancy to believe, that I yet had being, and 
lived. Methought there came one of divine shape, 
and said to me, " xAdam! thy habitation wants thee; 
rise, first Man, and ordained first father of innumera- 
ble men! I come (called by thee) to be thy guide to thy 
prepared seat, which is the garden of Paradise." Say- 
ing this, he took and raised me by the hand, and over 
fields and waters, in the air, as it were wafting me along, 
without stopping, at last led me up to a woody moun- 
tain, upon whose high top was a plain: a wide cir- 
cuit enclosed, planted with all manner of goodly trees, 
having many walks and bowers, in comparison of 
which what I saw upon earth before scarcely seemed 
pleasant: every tree was loaded with the fairest fruit, 
that hung tempting to the eye, and moved in me a cer- 
tain appetite to gather of it and eat; whereon I walked, 
and found all real before my eyes, as the dream had 
in a lively manner represented to me. Here I had 
began to wander again, had not he, who was my guide 
up hither, appeared from among the trees; it was God 
himself.— Rejoicing, but with great awe and submission^ 
T fell down in adoration at his feet: he raised me uj> 



33 



374 PARADISE LOST. book viii, 

gently, and mildly said; " Whom thou soughtest I am, 
the author of all this thou seest, above, or beneath, or 
round about thee. I give thee this Paradise, account 
it thine, to till and keep it, and eat the fruits of it with 
cheerful heart; eat freely of every tree that grows in 
the garden; fear no scarcity here: but of the tree, 
whose operation brings the knowledge of good and 
evil, which I have set as the pledge of thy faith and 
obedience in the middle of the garden, and close by 
the tree of life (remember what I warn thee! ) shun to 
taste it, and shun the bitter consequence; for know, 
the day that thou eatest thereof transgressing my sole 
command, thou shalt assuredly die: from that day take 
mortality; lose this happy state, and be expelled from 
hence into a world of woe and misery."- — He pro- 
nounced the severe prohibition sternly, which yet re- 
sounds dreadfully in mine ear, though it be in mine 
own choice, not to incur the penalty of disobedience: 
but soon again clearing his aspect, he thus renewed his 
gracious purpose, and said; " Not only this Paradise, 
but to thee and thy race I give all the earth; possess 
it as lords, and also all the things that live therein, or 
in sea, or air: in sign of which, behold every bird and 
beast after their kinds: I bring them to thee, that they 
may from thee receive their names, and pay the hom- 
age with low subjection: thou mayest understand the 
same of fish, that reside in the waters, smd are not 
brought hither, seeing they cannot change their ele- 
ment, nor live in the thin air." As he spake thus, eve- 
ry bird and beast came towards me in pairs; the beasts 
creeping near the ground and fawning, and the birds 
flying low: I named them as they passed, and God en- 
dowed my sudden apprehension with such knowledge, 
that I understood all their natures; but in all these, 
methought, I did not find what I wanted; and thus I 
presumed to speak to the divine presence: 



ohap. ii. PARADISE LOST. 275 

By what name, or how may I adore thee; for thou 
being above all these, above mankind, or any thing 
higher than mankind, art far above any name that I 
can give thee, great Author of this universe, and all 
this good to Man? for whose well being so fully and 
so liberally thou hast provided all things. But I see 
none who partakes these blessings with me: what hap- 
piness is there in solitude? or what enjoyment can there 
be alone? or enjoying all things Avhat contentment can 
be found? 

Thus much I ventured to say; and God made me 
this reply: What is it thou callest solitude? are not 
the earth and air full of various living creatures, and 
all these ready at thy command, to come and play be- 
fore thee? dost not thou understand their language and 
their ways? for they also know, and reason in a man- 
ner not to be contemned. Thy dominion is large, do 
thou be contented to govern, and pass thy time away 
with pleasure among the creatures. 

Thus spake the universal Lord of all, and seemed in 
such manner to give out his order: when I, imploring 
leave to speak, and humbly begging that I might not 
offend, made this reply: 

Heavenly power! let not my words make thee an- 
gry, let my Maker be propitious while I speak! hast 
thou not created me here, and made me thy substitute, 
and set these inferior creatures far beneath me? what 
harmony, what society, or true delight, can subsist be- 
tween unequals? for all happiness must be mutual, 
given and received in due proportion; but where there 
is a disparity, one affectionate the other indifferent, the 
society agrees not well with either, but soon grows te- 
dious to both: I speak of fellowship fit to partake in 
all rational delights, which is that I seek, in which 
brutes cannot be consorted with Man; they can rejoice 
with each other, the lion with the lioness, as being fit* 






376 PARADISE LOST. book vih, 

ted to that end: but it is not so with bird and beast, 
nor fish and fowl with one another, as being of quite 
different species; neither can the bull so well converse 
with the ape; (e) much worse then, and least of all, 
can Man converse with beast. 

To which the Almighty, not displeased with my 
words, answered: Adam! I see thou proposest to thyself 
a nice and refined happiness, in the choice of thy associ- 
ates, and though surrounded with pleasure, wilt taste no 
pleasure, as being without companion. What then dost 
thou think of me, and of this my state? do I seem to 
thee sufficiently possest of happiness, or not, who am 
alone from all eternity? for I know none, either second 
to me or like me; much less equal to me. How then 
have I any to hold conversation with, except with the 
creatures which 1 have made, and all those are infinite 
degrees inferior to me, more than what the lowest of 
the other creatures are to thee? 

Here he left off speaking, and I lowly and submis- 
sively replied: Supreme Lord of all! human thoughts 
fall short to attain the height and depth of thy eternal 
ways: in thee is found no deficiency, for thou in thyself 
art perfect: but Man is not so, only in degree; which is 
the cause that he desires by conversation with his like, 
to help his defects, or give comfort. There is no need 
that thou shouldest propagate, who art already infinite; 
and though but one, art through all numbers: but Man 
is to beget like of his like, and mutiply his image, 
which requires collateral love, and strictest amity. 
Thou although alone, art best accompanied with thyself 

(e) Jlpe; Sax. A monkey; there are several sorts of them: 
baboons ami monkeys have tails which the ape wants. It is 
the mimic of mankind: the ancients believed this creature came 
nearest to the human species of all other animals: but the chim- 
panze found lately in Africa, comes nearer by far to the resem- 
blance of man and woman. 



ohap. m. PARADISE LOST. £77 

in thy own secrecy, and dost not seek social communi- 
cation, yet at thy own good pleasure canst highly 
dignify thy creatures, and raise them up to what degree 
of union or communion thou wilt. I by conversing 
with the brutes, cannot elevate their natures, nor find 
any complaisance in their ways. 

Thus I spoke, being by permission emboldened to 
use such freedom, and found acceptance; which from 
the gracious divine voice obtained this answer: Adam! 
thus far I was pleased to try thee, and find thee know- 
ing not only of beasts (to which thou hast given right 
names according to their natures) but of thyself; ex- 
pressing well the free spirit within thee, which is my 
image, and not imparted to the brutes; whose fellow- 
ship therefore being improper for thee, there was good 
reason that thou shouldest freely dislike it; keep still 
in the same mind: I, before thou spake st, knew well 
that it was not meet for Man to be alone; and no such 
company as thou then sawest, was intended for thy 
conversation, but only brought for trial, to see how 
thou couldest judge of what was meet and fit. What 
I bring thee next be assured shall please thee; for it 
shall be thy likeness, thy fit help, thy other self, and 
exactly according to the wish and desire of thy heart. 



CHAPTER III. 

Adavn relates his first meeting and nuptials with Eve; his dis* r 
course with the angel. 

He ended here, or else I heard him no longer; for 
now my earthly being overpowered by his heavenly 
nature, which it had long stood under, strained to the 
heighth in celestial and sublime conference, sunk down, 
as dazzled and spent with an object too bright for hu- 



&78 PARADISE LOST. book viii. 

man sense; and I sought relief from sleep, which in- 
stantly fell upon me. Though my eyes were closed, 
yet my fancy kept waking, by which (being abstracted 
as in a trance) niethought though I was sleeping where 
I lay, I still saw the glorious shape before whom I 
stood when I was awake, who stooping down, opened 
ni j left side, and took out from thence a rib, warm 
with cordial spirits, and thel lifeblood fresh streaming: 
the wound though it was wide, he suddenly filled up 
with flesh and healed. He formed and fashioned the 
rib with his hands, and under his forming hands there 
grew a creature like Man, but of different sex; so 
lovely fair, that what seemed fair in all the world now 
seemed mean, or summed up and contained in her and 
her looks; which from that time infused sweetness into 
my heart never felt before, and into all things inspired 
the spirit and delight of love. She disappeared, and 
left me! I waked to find her, or for ever to lament her 
loss, and abjure all other pleasures: when out of hope 
to see her more, behold she appeared not far off! just 
such as I had seen her in my dream; adorned with 
every thing that heaven or earth could bestow upon 
her, to make her amiable: on she came, led (though 
he was not visible) by her heavenly Maker, and guided 
by his voice; not uninformed of nuptial sanctity, and 
the rites of marriage: grace was in all her steps, beau- 
ty like the stars of heaven in her eyes, and in every 
gesture, love and dignity. I overjoyed, could not help 
crying out aloud: " Bounteous and good Creator! thou 
hast fulfilled thy words! thou giver of all things fair, 
but this is the fairest of all thy gifts! nor dost thou 
envy the happiness of thy creatures. I now see my- 
self before me, the bone of my bone, and the flesh of 
my flesh: her name is Woman, (/) extracted from 

{/) Woman; Sax. q. the ivomb of man, or the woe of man; 
because of the sin and misery she has brought upon man. 



chap. in. PARADISE LOST. £79 

Man: for this cause Man shall leave his father and 
his mother, and they shall be one flesh, and one heart, 
and one soul." 

She heard me speak thus; and though led on by 
God himself, yet her virtue, innocence, virgin modesty, 
and the consciousness of her own worth (that would 
be courted, and not be won unsought; not forward, but 
retiring back the more desirable) or, to say all, nature 
herself (though she was quite free from thought of sin) 
wrought in her so, that seeing me she turned away: I 
followed her; she knew what was honour, and with 
yielding majesty approved the pleading of my reason. 

1 led her blushing to the nuptial bower: on that 

hour all fortunate stars shed their kindest influence; 
the very earth, and every hill gave signs of joy; the 
birds, the fresh gales, and the gentle winds carried it 
through the woods, and as they flew scattered odours 
from aromatic shrubs, until the nightingale begun to 
sing our espousals, and the evening star appeared for 
the bridal lamp. 

Thus I have told thee all concerning my state, and 
continued my story to the sum of earthly happiness 
which I enjoy; and I must confess to find indeed in 
every thing else delight; but such as, whether used 
or not, works no great change, nor vehement desire in 
the mind; I mean these delicacies of taste, sight, and 
smell, such as herbs, fruits and flowers, pleasant walks, 
and melody of birds; but far otherwise in regard to 
Eve, on whom I look with transport, and whom I with 
transport touch: here I first felt passion, superior to 
all enjoyments else, and am unmoved, except by this 
strange commotion; finding myself only weak here, 
and unable to stand against the powerful charm of 
beauty. Whether nature failed in making me, and 
left some part of me not proof enough to sustain such 
an object; or making of her out of my side, perhaps 



280 PARADISE LOST. book viii. 

took more than enough, and part of my strength from 
me; at least bestowed upon her too much ornament, 
taking great care to finish her as to the outward show, 
but less exact as to her mind; for I well understand 
in the first design of nature, that in the abilities and 
powers of the mind, which excel all outward forms, 
she is the inferior; in her outward form also less re- 
sembling his image who made both, and less expressing 
the character of that dominion given over other crea- 
tures: yet when I approach her loveliness, she seems 
so absolutely complete in herself, and so well to know 
her own proper part, that whatever she wills to say 
or do, seems most virtuous, most discreet, wisest and 
best; all higher knowledge loses its value in her pre- 
sence, and wisdom in discourse with her, shews like 
folly: authority and reason wait upon her, as one design- 
ed first, and not made occasionally afterwards: and (to 
sum up all) greatness of mind and nobleness appear 
lovely in her, and create an awe about her, as if she was 
guarded by angels. To whom the angel, with a con- 
tracted brow, made this reply: 

Bo not thou presume to accuse nature, she hath done 
her part; do thou but thine: be not diffident of wisdom; 
wisdom will not desert thee, if thou dost not dismiss 
her, when thou hast most occasion to have her near thee; 
by attributing too much to things less excellent. For 
what is it thou admirest so? what is it so transports thee? 
an outside? fair, no doubt, and very well worthy thy 
cherishing, honouring, and loving; but not worthy thy 
subjection. Consider her with thyself, then value both: 
oftentimes nothing is more profitable than self-esteem, 
grounded upon a just and well managed right: the more 
of that thou learnest to know, the more she will acknow- 
ledge thee to be her head, and yield all her appearances 
of wisdom to reality: she was made so beautiful for the 
sake of thy delight; so awful, that thou mightest with 



crfAP. in. PARADISE LOST. 28i 

honour love her, who, if thou forgoest thy wisdom, will 
see and perhaps triumph over thy weakness. But if that 
sense of touch, whereby Mankind is propagated, seem 
to thee such a dear delight beyond all other; think that 
the same is vouchsafed to cattle, and every beast; which 
would not be made common to them, if there were any 
thing in the enjoyment of it, to subdue the soul of a Man, 
or move him to passion: what thou findest in the society 
of Eve above this, that is attractive, human, and ration- 
al: do thou still love; for in loving thou dost well, but 
not in subjecting thyself to passion, wherein true love 
does not subsist. Love refines the thoughts, and enlar- 
ges the heart, hath his seat in reason, and acts by choice: 
love is the scale by which thou mayest ascend to hea- 
ven, but not when sunk in carnal pleasure; for which 
reason there was no companion found thee among the 
brutes. To whom Adam, half ashamed, made answer. 
Neither her outside, which is formed so fair, nor any 
thing in procreation, which is common to all kinds 
(though I think of the marriage bed with a higher and 
more mysterious reverence) delight me so much as those 
graceful actions, those many decencies, that daily result 
from all she does and says; mixed with love and sweet 
compliance, which declare an unfeigned union of mind, 
or that there is in us both but one soul; which harmo- 
ny in a wedded pair, is more grateful than music to 
to the ear. Yet these subject me not; I discover to 
thee what I feel inwardly from thence, but I am not 
therefore overcome: I meet with various objects, vari- 
ously represented through the senses to the mind; yet 
still being free, I approve the best, and follow what I 
approve. Thou blamest me not to love, for thou say- 
est that love leads up to heaven, that it is both the way 
and the guide; then bear with me, if what I ask is 
lawful: do not the spirits of heaven love? how do they 
express it? is it only by their looks? or do they mix 

36 




PARADISE LOST. book viii 

their pure emanations? do they touch by influence, or 
sensibly as we do one another? 

To whom the angel, with a smile that glowed rosy 
upon his face (the proper hue of love) made answer: 
Let it suffice thee, that thou knowest that we are happy, 
and without love there is no happiness. Whatever 
thou enjoyest pure in the body (and thou wert created 
pure) we enjoy more eminently; and find no obstacle, 
no exclusive bars of joint, membrane, or limb: if spirits 
embrace, they mix totallyj easier than air with air; 
union and commixture of pure with pure; alike kin- 
dled with desire; nor need any of the restrained con- 
veyances of the senses or passions, as flesh does with 
flesh, or soul with soul. But I can now stay no lon- 
ger; for the sun is setting in the west, which is my 
signal to depart. Be strong, live happy, and love! 
but first of all love him, whom to love rightly is to 
obey, and keep his great commandment: take heed, 
lest passion should sway thy judgment to do any thing, 
which else free will would not admit of. The happi- 
ness or unhappiness of thee and all thy posterity is 
placed in thee: beware! I, and all the blest above^ 
shall rejoice to see thee persevere in obedience. 
Stand fast; it lies free in thy own election, to stand or 
fall: having power sufficient within, seek no help else- 
where, and repel every temptation to transgress. 

Saying this, he arose; and Adam thus followed him 
with thanks: Since the time of thy departure is come, 
go, heavenly messenger, and guest sent from him whose 
sovereign goodness I adore! thy condescension hath 
been very gentle and affable to me, and shall ever be 
honoured with grateful remembrance: continue still to 
be good and friendly to mankind, and return hither 
often. 

So they parted; the angel flying up to heaven, and 
Adam to his bower, to seek for Eve. 



THE NINTH BOOK 



OF 



PARADISE LOST. 



THE ARGUMENT. 



Satan having compassed the earth, with meditated guile re- 
turns, as a mist, by night into Paradise, and enters into the 
serpent sleeping. Adam and Eve in the morning go forth 
to their labours, which Eve proposes to divide in several pla- 
ces, each labouring apart: Adam consents not, alledging the 
danger, lest that enemy, of whom they are forewarned, should 
attempt her alone: Eve loath to be thought not circumspect 
or firm enough, urges her going apart, the rather desirous 
to make trial of her strength, and Adam at last yields. The 
serpent finds Eve alone, approaches and speaks to her, with 
many wiles and arguments; induces her to taste the Tree 
of Knowledge forbidden: she resolves to impart thereof to 
Adam. Eve brings of the fruit to Adam, he eats also, the 
effects thereof on them both. 



CHAPTER I. 

Satan having compassed the earth, with meditated guile returns 
by night into Paradise, and enters into the serpent sleeping. 

Henceforward I shall have no more to relate of 
God or angel sitting an indulgent and familiar guest 
with Man, as with his friend, partaking with him in 
his repast, and permitting him the while to discourse 
innocently without blame. Now I must change to 
mournful subjects; foul distrust, and disloyal breach of 
duty: revolt and disobedience on the part of Man, 
and on the part of alienated heaven, distance, dislike, 
anger, just rebuke, and judgment pronounced, that 
brought into this world all our woe; that brought in sin 
and death, and all those bitter evils that bring death 
on. This is a theme of sorrow; yet the subject is great, 
and more heroic than the anger of Achilles, (a) or rage 
of Turnus, (b) or that of Neptune, (c) or Juno, which 

(a) Achilles; Lat. Gr. i. e. without a lip; which was burnt, 
when he was an infant: or, free from pain: because he was made 
invulnerable, by being dipt all over in the river Styx, except 
the heel, by which his mother held him. The son of Peleus, 
king of Thessaly, and Thetis, goddess of the sea; the most va- 
liant of all the Grecian heroes, that went to the siege of Troy. 
After many heroic actions he was slain by Paris, being shot in 
the heel. 

(&) Turnus; Rutil. An ancient king of the Rutilians, who 
were old inhabitants of Italy, long before the Latins. He was 
a brave champion; but at last engaging with iEneas, for the 

(c) Neptune; Lat. Gr. i. e. a washer; or from Nephtin; Heb. 
and Egypt, i. e. maritime: hence Nephtuchim, a colony of the 



£86 PARADISE LOST. book xx. 

so long perplexed the Greeks and Trojans; (d) though 
these arguments employed the pens of the two great 
poets Homer and Virgil: if I might but obtain of heaven 
a style, answerable to what I have to treat of: or might 
be visited by that spirit, that often dictates when I am 
slumbering, and inspires me unpremeditated on such 
high matters; on which I have had long intention to 
write, beginning late, and being long in choice of a sub- 
ject; not taking delight in writing of wars, which have 
hitherto been the only arguments held in estimation; to 
relate tedious and feigned battles, fought by feigned 
knights; (at the same time leaving unmentioned the bet- 
ter fortitude of patience and heroic martyrdom) or to de- 
scribe races and games, tilting (e) furniture, and tinsel 

sake of Lavinia, was slain by him in a duel; as Livy, Floras, 
Justin, and Virgil relate, which many learned authors have 
confuted since. 

Egyptians descended from Mizraim, who settled upon the coasts 
of the Mediterranean sea, Gen. x. 13. Whence the Greeks 
feigned this fable of Neptune, the god of the sea: and under 
this fable is included Japhet, the eldest sou of Noah; because 
the islands and continent of Europe, lying upon the Mediterra- 
nean sea, fell to his share. So the ancients preserved the me- 
mory of Japhet, under this and other disguises. 

(d) Troy; from Tros, one of its kings, who enlarged it; an 
ancient city of Phrygia in the Lesser Asia, three miles from 
the Egean sea, on the river Xanthus, near M. Ida. It was 
founded by Dardanus, A.M. 2574. Troy had only seven kings, 
viz. Teucer, Dardanus, Erycthonius, Tros, Ilus, Laomedon, 
and Priamus, under whom it was burnt and razed by the Gre- 
cians, after a siege often years; about A.M. 2766, 432 years 
before the building of Rome, 317 years after its first founding, 
and 1183 before Christ. There were no monuments of it to be 
seen in Strabo's time, and he lived in the reign of Tiberius 
the emperor. The Trojans made divers colonies upon the Medi- 
terranean sea. 

(e) Tilting; Sax. O. E. The running of armed men on horse- 
back, one against another, with spears. A diversion much 
practised among the ancients, and first used at the old Ne- 
msean games in Greeee. 



chap. s. PARADISE LOST. 287 

trappings of gorgeous knights at joust and tournament; 
(/) then describing feasts, served up in voluptuousness 
and state; which are things too mean to merit the name 
of heroic. Neither skilled or studious concerning such 
things, I leave them for this higher argument, which is 
of itself sufficient to lay claim to that name; unless the 
world be in its decay, or years, or coldness of climate 
hinder me from being raised high enough to treat of it 
properly; nor could I attempt it without the assistance 
of the divine Spirit. 

It was now dark night, when Satan, who but lately 
fled out of Eden before the threats of the angel Gabri- 
el, now having meditated more fraud and malice, and 
being bent on the destruction of Man (not regarding 
what might happen to fall heavier on himself) returned 
again without fear about midnight from compassing the 
earth; fearful of being discovered, if he appeared by 
day, ever since Uriel the angel who was regent of the 
sun, discovered his entrance, and forewarned the cheru- 
bim that kept their watch. When he was driven from 
thence full of anguish, he kept in darkness the space 
of seven successive nights; three times he went round 
the equinoctial line; four times he crossed towards the 
poles obliquely, still to avoid the sun; in which time he 
had traversed the whole globe: on the eighth night he 
returned to Eden, and on the side, where the entrance 
seemed most difficult and therefore was left unwatched., 
by stealth found an unsuspected way. There was a place 
which now is not, nor has been since the fall of Adam, 
where the river Tigris (g) shot into a gulf under ground 

(/) Tournament, Fr. Ital. i. e. a turning round; a concourse. 
A milit. diversion. Turning, justling and fighting on horse- 
back. 

(g) Tigris. A Persian and Median word; from the Heb. i. 
p. An arrow or dart; because of the rapidity of its course. 
Therefore Dionysius calls it the most rapid of all rivers in the 



288 PARADISE LOST. book ix. 

to the foot of Paradise, until part of it rose a fountain 
near the tree of life: Satan threw himself into the river, 
and rose up (involved in a mist) with the fountain into 
Paradise, then thought where to conceal himself: he 
had searched sea and land, from Eden over to Pontus, 
and from Maaotis (h) up beyond the river Oby, (i) 
downward as far as the south pole; and in length west 
from Orontes to the Isthmus of Darien, (k) that stops 

world; Per. I. line 778. It riseth in mount Ararat or Niphates 
in Armenia, parts Mesopotamia and Assyria, runs by Babylon, 
and a little below Bagdad joins the Euphrates. In holy writ 
it is called Hiddekel, or Chiddekel, which comes from Chadda 9 
i. e. sharp, and Cat, i. e. swift, because it flows from the high 
mountains of Armenia; Heb. i. e. swiftness, Gen. ii. 24*. The 
great river Hiddekel. Dan. x. 4. Now Tigril by the Turks 
according to their corrupt pronunciation. 

(Ii) Mceotis; Lat. Gr. i. e. the mother or nurse of the sea; be- 
cause it is the source or original spring of the Pontus. It is a 
lake on the coast of Crim-Tartary, into which the river Tanais 
runneth, and parts Europe from Asia, on that side. In the deep- 
est parts it is not above 1 8 feet. 

(£) Oby, by a fig. of gram. In Lat. Obba, or Obius; Pers. 
Tartar. Extension, wideness; because it is a broad river. A 
vast river, which parts Siberia and Tartary from Russia. It 
rises from the Lake Oseroy Teleskoy, or Altan Nor, bears at 
first the name of By, and does not take that of Oby, till after 
it has received the waters of the river Chatun, twenty leagues 
from Teleskoy; then it runs directly north, and empties itself 
about the 65th degree of north lat. into the Guba Tassa Koya, 
from thence into the Icy sea in six months, over against Nova 
Zembla, after a course of 500 German leagues. The Russians, 
since they conquered Siberia, have built about twelve fine towns 
or forts upon it, to overawe the Tartars. About 150 leagues 
from the source it is half a league broad, and constantly increases 
in depth and breadth, and abounds with plenty of all manner 
of fish. 

(k) Darien; American. A neck of land 18 and in some pla- 
ces no more than 12 leagues over from east to west, upon the 
river Darien, between the gulf of Mexico and the south sea: 
therefore the Spaniards attempted to cut it, but they could not 
perfect it. It joined North and South America. 



chap. i. PARADISE LOST. gg9 

the South sea, and joins the North and South America, 
and from thence he had journeyed as far as India. 
Thus he roamed over all the world, with strict search 
and deep inspection, considering every creature, which 
of them might best serve his wily purposes; and he 
found the serpent to be the subtlest beast of all the 
field. After much irresolution aud consideration, he at 
last chose him; thinking him a fit instrument of fraud, 
in whom he might enter, and hide his dark designs 
from the most piercing sight: for in the subtle serpent, 
whatever appeared might pass without remark, and be 
thought to proceed from his natural wit and cunning; 
which observed in other beasts, might raise a suspicion 
of diabolical power, acting within beyond the sense of 
brutes. Therefore he made this resolution, but first 
stung with inward grief, he burst out into this passion- 
ate complaint: 

O earth, how like art thou to heaven? if not more just- 
ly preferred to it; a seat worthier of gods, as being built 
with second thoughts, improving upon the old plan! for 
what Grod would build worse than he had done before? 
it is a terrestial heaven, attended on by other heavens, 
that move round it and shine; yet bear their bright lights 
above lights for that alone, as seeming there to cen- 
tre the influence of all their precious beams: as God is 
centre in heaven, and yet extends to all; so that being 
as in the centre, receives virtue from all those orbs; 
for here, and not in themselves, appear all their known 
efficacy, productive of herb, plant, and the nobler birth 
of creatures, animated with vegetative, sensitive, and 
rational life, which all are summed up and meet in 
Man! with what delight (if I could have joy in any 
thing) could I inhabit here? where there is a sweet 
change of hill and valley, rivers, woods, and plains, 
with land and sea, and forest, and rocks, and caves: 
but I can find no place of ease or refuge in any of these; 

37 



290 



PARADISE LOST. 



BOOK IX. 



and the more I see of pleasures about me, so much the 
more torment I feel within me, that by comparison 
makes hell appear more intolerable: all good to me 
becomes a curse, and my state would be still much 
worse, were I in heaven. But I neither seek to dwell 
here, nor in heaven, except I could overcome him, who 
is now supreme there: nor have I any hope to make 
myself less miserable by what I seek, but only to make 
others as I am, though worse should be multiplied and 
heaped upon me: for I find no ease to my relentless 
thoughts but in destruction: if I can destroy him, or 
win him (for whom all this was made) to do what may 
cause his own destruction, all this will follow with him 
of course, as being linked to him in joy or misery: in 
misery be it then, that destruction may spread over 
all. Among the infernal powers, glory shall be given 
to me alone, to have marred what he, who is styled 
Almighty, continued six days and nights in making; 
and who knows how long before he had been contriv- 
ing it? though perhaps it has been since I in one night, 
set almost half the angels free from inglorious servitude, 
and left the throng of his worshippers something thin- 
ner. He to be avenged, and to repair his numbers, which 
I had thus lessened, determined to advance into our 
room a creature formed of the earth, and endow him 
(though raised from such a base original) with those 
heavenly perfections, which once were ours: this he 
has done, either in greater spite to us, advancing such 
low creatures to such high dignity; or else his power, 
which he had of old, to create angels is spent: (if at 
least he ever did create them, which who knows?) what 
he decreed, that he effected; he made Man, and built 
for him this magnificent world, gave him the earth for 
his seat, and pronounced him lord; and (Oh! what an 
indignity was that!) subjected angels to be his servants, 
and to watch and tend upon an earth-born charge. I 



chap, i. PARADISE LOST. 291 

dread the vigilance of those who keep guard over them 
and to avoid it, thus wrapped up in an obscure mist of 
midnight vapour, I glide and pry in every bush and 
bramble, where I may by chance find the serpent asleep; 
in whose shape I may hide me, and the dark design I 
bring with me. Oh foul downfal indeed! that I, who 
once contended to sit the highest with gods, and now 
forced into a beast, and mixed with beastial slime to 
to become incarnate, and inform the body of a brute, 
that before aspired to the height of deity! but what 
will not ambition and revenge descend to? they who 
aspire too high must stoop as low, and first or last 
lay themselves liable to the basest things. Revenge, 
though sweet at first, soon becomes bitter, and recoils 
back upon itself: let it; I care not, so it strikes him 
sure, who next to the King of heaven provokes my 
envy, this new favourite, this Man of clay, this son of 
despite, whom the more to spite us, his Maker has rais- 
ed from the dust: then spite is best paid with spite. 
So saying, creeping low like a black mist through 
every thicket, he held on his midnight search, where 
he hoped soonest to find the serpent: he soon disco- 
vered him, fast asleep, rolled round and round, with 
his head in the middle, full of subtilty; not yet in hor- 
rid shades or a dismal den (for there were as yet no 
such things) but he slept upon the grass, without fear 
or without being feared, for now no creature was hurt- 
ful. The devil entered in at his mouth, and possess- 
ing his brutal sense, soon inspired his understanding 
with his own spirit; but not disturbing his sleep, lay 
close, waiting for morning. 






293 PARADISE LOST. book xx. 



CHAPTER II. 

Adam and Eve in the morning go forth to their labours, which 
Eve proposes to divide in several places, each labouring apart: 
Adam endeavours to dissuade Eve therefrom; but not prevail' 
ing, at length consents. 

Now when it began to be morning in Eden, and 
the flowers opened and breathed their morning incense; 
when all tilings that the earth produces, proving the 
wisdom of the great Creator, silently praise him; Adam 
and Eve came forth, and joined their vocal worship: 
that done, they partake of all the blessings with which 
they were surrounded, sweetest scents, and freshest 
air; then consult, how they may that day do all the 
work in the garden, there was for them to do; (for 
their work much outgrew the despatch of their two la« 
bours) and Eve thus began to speak to her husband: 

Adam! we may still labour on to dress this garden, 
to tend the plants, herbs, and flowers, which is the 
pleasant task enjoined us, but until more hands assist 
us, the work grows under our hands, and what we lop 
off by day, as being overgrown, or prune, or prop, or 
bind up, in one night or two springs forth again, and 
grows wild. Now therefore give thy advice, or first 
hear what thoughts present to my mind: let us divide 
our labours; do thou go where thy own choice leads 
thee, either to wind the woodbine round about this ar- 
bour, or direct the ivy where it may be properest for 
it to climb; while I among yonder roses, which are 
intermixed with myrtle, see what there is to set right 
until noon: for while we choose our task thus, so near 
one another all the day long, what wonder is it if looks 
and smiles come between, and any new object bring 
up accidental discourse between us; which makes our 



chap, ii. PARADISE LOST. $93 

day's work (so intermitted) to be brought to little, 
though we begin early, and night comes before we are 
prepared for it. 

To whom Adam returned this mild answer: Fair 
Eve, my only partner and companion! dear to me be- 
yond comparison above all living creatures! thou hast 
employed thy thoughts well, and hast well proposed 
how we might best accomplish the work, assigned us 
here by God, nor shalt thou go unpraised by me for 
it: (for nothing can be found more lovely in a woman, 
than to study the good of her household, and to pro- 
mote good works in her husband:) yet our Lord hath 
not imposed labour on us so very strictly, as to debar 
us from taking (when Ave need) any refreshment, whe- 
ther food, or conversation, which is as food to the mind; 
nor does he forbid us this sweet intercourse of looks 
and smiles, for smiles flow from reason, denied to the 
brutes, and are the food of love, and love is not the 
lowest end or intention of human life; for he did not 
make us to irksome and tiresome toil, but to delight, 
and to that delight joined reason. Doubt not, but our 
joint hands will be able, with ease, to keep these paths 
and bowers from going into wilderness, at least as 
wide as we need walk, and until younger hands, be- 
fore it is long, shall assist us. But if over much of my 
conversation perhaps may cloy thee, on that account I 
could yield to a short absence: (for sometimes solitude 
is the best society, and a short separation causes sweet- 
ness at return) but another doubt possesses me; lest 
when thou art separated from me, something ill should 
befall thee: thou knowest what warning hath been given 
us, what a malicious foe, despairing of his own happi- 
ness and envying ours, seeks by contrivance to bring 
us to shame and misery; and watches, no doubt, some- 
where near at hand, with a greedy hope to find his 
wish, and us asunder, when he might take an advan- 



294 PARADISE LOST. book ix. 

tage; for he can have no hope to circumvent us thus 
joined together, where each in a time of need, might 
speedily and easily give help to the other. Whether 
his first design be to draw us from our duty to God, 
or whether he would disturb our conjugal love; (than 
which perhaps no happiness enjoyed by us more ex- 
cites his envy) let it be this or worse, leave not the 
faithful side, from whence thou hast thy being, aud 
that still guards and protects thee: for where danger or 
dishonour lurks, a wife is safest, and seemliest by the 
side of her husband, who defends her, or else endures 
the worst with her. 

To whom Eve, with virgin modesty and yet majestic, 
as one who loves, and from whom he loves meets with 
some unldndness, sweetly composed, and yet not with- 
out some austerity, replied thus: 

Offspring of heaven and earth, and lord of all the 
earth! that we have such an enemy, who seeks our ruin* 
I have learnt, both by information from thee, and from 
what I over-heard from the angel as he was departing, 
where I stood behind in a shady nook, being just then 
returned, at the shutting of the flowers in the evening. 
But that thou shouldest doubt ray firmness to God or 
thee, because we have a foe may happen to tempt it, I 
must confess I did not expect to hear: thou art not afraid 
of his violence, it being such (for he cannot destroy us, 
or put us to pain) as we can either not receive, or else 
resist and repel it: it is his fraud then that thou art 
afraid of; which plainly infers thy fear equal, that my 
firm faith and love, can be seduced or shaken by his 
fraud: how could such thoughts find any harbour in thy 
breast, such ungrounded suspicion, Adam, of her, that 
but just now thou saidest was so dear to thee? 

To whom Adam, with healing words, made answer: 
Immortal Eve! (formed by God himself from Man!) for 
such thou art, while free from sin and blame; that I per- 



ghap. ii. PARADISE LOST. 295 

suade tliee not to absent thyself from my sight, is not 
because I am diffident of thee, but to avoid the attempt 
itself, intended by our enemy: for he who tempts, 
though it prove in vain, however asperses the tempted 
with some degree of dishonour; for it supposes the 
tempted not proof against temptation, but liable to be 
corrupted! even thou thyself, were such a wrong offered 
thee, wouldest resent it with scorn and anger though it 
proved ineffectual: then think it not amiss, if I endea- 
vour to prevent such an affront being put upon thee 
alone, which the enemy, though bold, will hardly dare 
to offer us both at once. Nor do thou think to lightly 
of his fraud and malice; he must needs be very subtle 
who could seduce angels; nor do thou think the assist- 
ance of another unnecessary or superfluous: I, from the 
influence of thy looks receive increase of every virtue; 
in thy sight I am wiser, more watchful (if need were of 
outward strength) stronger; for shame, to be overcome 
or over-reached while thou looked on, would raise new 
vigour in me, and make me exert my self to the utmost: 
why shouldst not thou, when I am present, feel the 
like sense within thee, and choose the trial along with 
me, who am the best witness of thy tried virtue? 

In this domestic manner, and in his matrimonial care 
and love, Adam spoke; but Eve, who thought less was 
attributed to her dear faith than was due, with soft 
words made answer: 

How are we happy, if this is our condition? always 
to be in fear of harm, and always to dwell thus in narrow 
bounds, straitened by a subtle or violent enemy, and we 
meeting him single, not endowed with power to defend 
ourselves against him? well, but harm thou sayest does 
not come before sin; only our foe if he tempts us, he 

affronts us with his foul opinion of our integrity: 

His foul opinion fixes no dishonour upon us, but turns 
fouler upon himself: then wherefore should he be 



296 PARADISE LOST. book «. 

shunned or feared by us, who rather gain double ho- 
nour by the event, from proving his surmise false, and 
are favoured from heaven with a witness of peace 
within, that our virtues have stood the trial? and what 
is faith, or love, or virtue, that has not been tried in 
its own strength, and without other assistance? do not 
let us suspect, that our happy state is left so imperfect 
by the wise Creator, as not to be secure as well alone, 
as when in company together; for otherwise our hap- 
piness would be but frail, and Eden (to speak the 
truth) exposed in this manner, would be no Paradise 
at all. To whom Adam with some fervency replied: 
Oh woman! all things are best, as the will of God 
has ordained them: he created nothing imperfect, or 
left any thing that he had created deficient; much less 
Man, or any thing that might secure to him his happy 
state. Man is safe from outward force, all the danger 
lies within himself, and that in his own power; for 
against his will he can never receive harm: but God 
has left the will free; for what obeys reason that is 
free, and reason God made right: but let reason be- 
ware, and keep strict watch, lest surprised by fair ap- 
pearances of good, she dictate falsely, and so influence 
the will to do that which God hath expressly forbid. 
It is not mistrust then, but tender love, that urges me 
to mind thee often of thy duty; and do thou often re- 
mind me! we subsist and remain firm, yet it is possible 
for us to swerve; since our reason may meet some spe- 
cious temptation, made use of by our adversary to de- 
ceive us, and so not keeping watch in the strictest 
manner, as she was warned to do, reason may inad- 
vertently fall into the deception. Then do not seek 
temptation, which it were much better to avoid; which 
will be most likely, if thou separate thyself not from 
me: trials in all likelihood will come without seeking. 
Wouldest thou give proof of thy constancy? give proof 



chap. in. PARADISE LOST. $jg} 

»i thy obedience: who can be sure of thy constancy or 
attest it, not seeing thee attempted? but, if thou thinkest 
another time, when we are not so well warned, we 
may be found not so well prepared as thou seemest to 
think thyself. — Go! — -for if thou stay est, not being free, 
thou art but the more absent: Go! in thy native in- 
nocence! summon all thy virtue to thy assistance, and 
reply upon it! for God has done his part towards thee, 
do thou do thine. 

So spoke our first father; but Eve, submissive though 
vshe persisted and spake last, replied: Then thus fore- 
warned, and with thy permission, moved chiefly by 
the reasoning of thy own last words, I go the more 
willingly; thinking, as thou sayest, our trial might come, 
when least sought for or expected by us, and find us* 
both perhaps far less prepared: nor do I much expect 
that so proud a foe will first seek the weakest; but 
should he be bent so to do, his repulse should shame 
him the more. 



CHAPTER III. 

*£he serpent finds Eve alone; approaches and speaks to her, with. 
many wiles and arguments induces her to taste the Tree of 
Knowledge forbidden: she resolves to impart thereof to Adam, 

Saying this, Eve softly withdrew her hand from 
her husband's, and light, like what is feigned of wood 
nymphs, or of Diana's (I) train, betook her to the groves; 
J>ut in her gait and goddess like deportment, she sur- 
passed all that has been fabled of Diana's self; though 

{I) Diana, The daughter of Jupiter and Latona, goddess 
of the woods, hunting and virginity. The nymphs were her 
attendants. 

38 



208 PARADISE LOST. book ixC 

not armed like her with bow and quiver, but only with 
sueh gardening tools, as art had rudely formed without 
the help of fire, or the angels had brought. A pieture of 
Ceres in her prime, or of Pomona when she fled from 
Vertumnus, (m) is what she seemed likest, when she 
parted from Adam. He, with eyes full of affection, 
for a great while looked after her delighted; but yet 
he rather wished that she had stayed. He often repeated 
his charge to her to come back soon, and she as often 
promised him, that she would be returned to the bower 
by noon, and have every thing in the best order, to in- 
vite repast then, or repose after noon. Unfortunate 
Eve! much deceived, much failing of thy promised 
and presumed return! fatal event indeed! thou froni 
that hour didst never more find in Paradise either sweet 
repast, or sound repose! there was what waitetl in am- 
bush, among the shades and sweet flowers, with con- 
firmed and hellish rancour, to intercept thy way, or 
send the back again divested of thy innocence, thy 
faith, and bliss! — For now, and ever since the first 
break of day, Satan (a mere serpent only in appear- 
ance) was come forth, and upon his search; where he 
might likeliest find his purposed prey, the only two 
of mankind living, but in them the whole race includ- 
ed. He sought in every field and every bower, where 
any grove of trees, or piece of garden plot lay plea- 
santer than the rest, that looked like what was under 
daily tendance, or had been planted for pleasure by 
the shady banks of rivers, or the side of fountains. 

(m) Vertumnus; Lat. i. e. the changing year. A god among 
the old Romans, who fell in love with Pomona, and to obtain 
her, he turned himself into all forms. He was king of Tuscany 
who taught men the art of gardening; for which he was deified. 
This fable signifies the different seasons of the year. His feasts 
were celebrated at Rome, in the autumn; wherein they thank- 
ed that god for preserving the fruits to maturity. 



chap. in. PARADISE LOST* 399 

He sought for them both, but wished that it might be 
his lot to find Eve separate; but could not hope to 
meet with what so seldom happened; when beyond 
his hope, and agreeable to his wish, he spied Eve 
alone; she stood but half discovered, hid behind, and 
busied with roses, and other flowers, that grew thick 
round about: she was half stooping to support such 
flowers, whose stalks were weak and slender, whose 
blossoms, though gay, purple, red, or blue, or speckled 
with gold, being too heavy for the stem, hung droop- 
ing down: she ties them up gently with bands of myr- 
tle; at the same time not reflecting, that she herself 
was unsustained; so far from her best prop, and the 
storm so nigh. Satan (in the serpent) drew nearer, 
and erossed many a walk under shade of cedars, pines, 
or palm trees; then rolling to and fro boldly; some- 
times hid, sometimes seen, among the arbours, and 
flowers that grew upon the borders of the banks, and 
had been planted there by Eve; a more delightful spot 
than the fabulous gardens of Adonis, or of famous Al- 
cinous, (n) who entertained Ulysses; or that, which is 
no fiction, made by Solomon, where he held dalliance 
with his fair ^Egyptian queen, the daughter of Pharaoh. 
The place Satan admired much, but more the person 
of Eve: as one who has been long pent up in a great 
and populous city, where by reason of the number of 
inhabitants, and want of room to breathe more freely, 
the air is become unhealthy, going out on a summer's 
morning, to breathe among the neighbouring pleasant 
villages and farms, takes delight in every thing he 
meets with, the smell of the fresh mowed grass, cattle, 
or dairy, and every sight and sound that belongs to a 
country life; then if by chance some fair virgin pass 

(n) Alcinons entertained Ulysses in his disasters, as Homer 
relates. 



300 



PAfcADISE LOST. 



BOOK Iff. 



gracefully along, what before seemed pleasing, for her 
sake now pleases more, she most, and in her look all 
pleasure is summed up: such pleasure the serpent took 
to behold this bed of flowers, the sweet retirement of 
Eve, thus early and alone. The heavenly form of 
Eve, angelical (but only more soft and feminine) her 
graceful innocence, her air in every gesture or least 
action, when the devil saw, it overawed his malice, 
and was so charming that it bereaved him of the fierce- 
ness and cruelty of his intention. That moment he 
was absent, and abstracted from his evil self; and for 
the time became negatively and stupidly good; dis- 
armed of his enmity, fraud, hate, envy, and revenge. 
But the hot hell, that always burns in him (though he 
should be in the midst of heaven) soon ended his plea- 
sure, and tortures him now the more, the more that he 
sees of pleasure not ordained for him: then he soon 
recollected himself, gathers together all his fierce envy 
and hate, and thus rejoicing in his purpose, excites all 
his thoughts of mischief: 

Whither, my thoughts, have you led me! how sweet- 
ly carried me into such a transport, as could make me 
forget what brought me hither! love brought me not, 
but hate; not the hope to taste pleasure here, and ex- 
change Paradise for hell, but to destroy all pleasure, 
excepting that which I take in destruction; all other joy 
is lost to me! then do not let me slip the opportunity 
which now so favourably offers. Behold the woman 
alone, liable to all attempts! and her husband (for I can 
see far round) not near her; whose better understanding 
I rather slum, as well as his strength, lie being of a 
haughty courage, though made of earth, yet composed 
of limbs heroic and not weak, and as I cannot wound 
him nor touch his body, no inconsiderable foe: it is not 
so with me, so much hath hell debased, and pain 
weakened me to what I was in heaven, that I am liable 



chap. in. PARADISE LOST. 301 

to all: she is divinely fair, and fit love for gods, not 
terrible; though terror be in love and beauty, unless it 
is approached by a mind armed with hate as mine is; a 
hate the greater, as it is disguised under dissembled 
love, which is the way I propose to take to bring her 
ruin to pass. 

Thus spake the great enemy of mankind, having 
possessed the serpent, and made his way towards Eve; 
not prone and waving upon the ground, as serpents are 
now, but rising from his tail in circles one above 
another: he had upon his head a crest, which he bore 
aloft, and his eyes resembled carbuncles; his neck a 
bright grass green, finely touched up (as painters ex- 
press it) with gold, rising up in circling spires from his 
body, which lay and floated about upon the grass; his 
shape was very lovely and pleasing, never since of 
serpent kind was more beautiful; not those that Her- 
mione (0) and Cadmus ( j?) were feigned to be changed 

(o) Hermione; Lat. Gr. from the Heb. I. e. the east; from 
mount Hermon in the east of Canaan, where she was born. 
She was the daughter of Mars andPenus, and the wife of Cad- 
mus, of which the poets made many fables. 

(p) Cadmus; Lat. Gr. Heb. i. e. the east: an ancient Phoe- 
nician, born at Sidon, said to be the son, rather the general, of 
Agenor, king of Phoenicia, about A.M. 2660. But more likely 
he was a Cadomite, about mount Hermon. The Cadomites 
are mentioned, Gen. xv. 19. About the time of Joshua, Cad-? 
mus fled from his victorious arms, came into Greece, settled a 
colony of the old Phoenicians there, built Thebes in Boetia, 
taught the Greeks the use of letters, steel, copper, brass and 
other arts; for which he was highly celebrated. He married 
Hermione, slew a terrible serpent that lay by the well Dirce, 
which destroyed man and beast thereabout, and all his own 
men, but five; and at last both his wife and he were changed 
into serpents; because he killed one, that was sacred to Mars. 
The truth is, Cadmus was an Hivite, Heb. i. e. a serpent, the 
restoring his men to life is, to enlist them into his army; the 
spears of brass were said to be the teeth of the serpent, i. e. of 



Sm PARADISE LOST. book ix. 

into, in Illjria; or the God worshipped in Epidaurus; 
(q) nor those to which it was pretended Jupiter Am- 
nion (r) was transformed, when he begot Alexander 
the Great upon Olympia; (s) or Jupiter Oapitoline, (t) 

Cadmus the itivite, the inventor of, or worker in brass; and 
the Hebrew word, which signifies V. signifies also an arm- 
ed man. 

(q) Epidaurus, or Epitaurus; as Eustatius and Strabo call 
it; Lat. from the Gr. i. e. near the bull. An ancient city of 
Agria, a small region of the Peloponnesus or Morea, upon the 
Egean sea, built by Darius, the son of Hystaspes, according to 
Pliny, lib. 6. c. 27. But by Titon, the father of Memnon, who 
came to assist at the siege of Troy, according to Strabo about 
A.M. 2976, and so called in memory of Jupiter's carrying Eu- 
ropa from Pheniee into Greece, and landing there, about A.M. 
52690. There iEsculapius was born, buried and worshipped; 
now called Esculapio after him: thither the sick resorted for 
cures. The Romans were directed in a raging plague, to fetch 
him, in the year 461. The Epidaurians were unwilling to part 
with their god, in the mean time an huge serpent swam into 
their ship, and wound itself round in the stern, which they took 
for the god, and carried him to Rome. There it quitted the 
ship, and went into a little isle in the river Tyber; the pesti- 
lence abated; and therefore they erected a temple to iEsculapius 
without the walls; and worshipped him under that form. The 
people of this place are celebrated by Virgil for their useful art 
of taming horses. There is another city of this name in Dal- 
matia, near the gulf of Venice. 

(r) Jupiter JImmon; Ham, the son of Noah, who had Africa 
for his share. In the sandy hot deserts of Lybia, a famous 
temple and oracle were erected to his memory, whom the Greeks 
called Jupiter Hammon. 

(s) Olympia; Lat. from the Gr. i. e. all night; her first name 
was Myrtalis; Lat. Gr. i. e. a myrtle tree. Justin, lib. 9. 7. 
13. t?ae wife of Philip, king of Macedon, and mother of Alex- 
ander the Great: she is said to have conceived, not of her own 

(t) Capitoline; of the Capitol; Lat. i. e. the head of Tolus, 
which was found buried there, when they dug for the foundation 
of it. The capitol is the grand castle of Rome, where Jupiter 
Capitol inns was worshipped in a most stately and rich temple. 



chap. in. PARADISE LOST. 303 

when he assumed such a shape, to enjoy the mother 
of Scipio, (u) the glory of Rome, (x) At first like one 
who wanted access, and yet was afraid to interrupt, he 
worked his way sidelong and winding about: just as 
when a ship brought on by some skilful pilot, near to 
a river's mouth or foreland, where the wind veers often, 

husband, but of another huge serpent. Hence, the flattering 
Greeks persuaded Alexander, that Jupiter Hammon, in the form 
of a serpent, was his real father: therefore he marched through 
the vast desert of Lybia to visit him, which the cunning priest 
confirmed, and called him, the son of Jupiter. This is related 
by Justin, Pliny, Q. Curtius, &c. 

wbo under the form of another serpent is said to have conversed 
with the mother of Scipio Africanus: this temple was begun by 
Tarquin I. the fifth king of Rome, A.M. 3372, upon the mount 
Tarpeius, and finished by his nephew Tarquin the Proud. It 
was burnt under Vitellius, and rebuilt by Vespasian, again un- 
der Titus, and rebuilt by Domitian, with great pomp. 

(u) Scipio; Lat. i. e. a staff. This was Publius Cornelius 
Scipio Africanus, who conquered Hannibal, razed Carthage, 
added Africa to the Roman empire, and advanced it to the 
height of all its glory: for which the senate decreed that he 
should be styled, The best man. But it was reported, that he 
was the son of Jupiter Capitolinus, who conversed with his 
mother in the form of another serpent also. Liv. Becad. 3. 1. 6. 

(x) Rome; Heb. i. e. high; being built on seven hills; or Gr. 
i. e. strength and power. The chief city of Italy upon both 
sides of the Tyber, ten miles from the sea, and 840 miles from 
London; the seat of the Roman empire, and for a long time, the 
mistress of the world; having had the greatest part of Europe, 
Asia and Africa under her. It was built by Romulus, at the 
end of the third year of the sixth Olympiad, A.M. 3031; 431 
after the destruction of Troy; and 753 before the incarnation, 
according to the most exact account. Yet it was taken ten times; 
1st, by the Gauls; 2nd, by Alaric king of the Goths; 3d, by 
Genseric king of Vandals; 4th, by Totila king cf the Goths: 
5th, by Odoacer king of the Heruli; 6th, by Theodoricus king of 
the Goths; 7th, by Gundebald king of the Burgundians; 8th, by 
the Moors; 9th, by Henry VI. emperor of Germany: 10th, by 
Charles duke of Bourbon, A.D. 1528. 



304 PARADISE LOST. book ik. 

shifts sail accordingly; so he varied his motions, and 
made many a wanton curl of his crooked train in the 
sight of Eve, in hopes to allure her eyes. She being 
busy, though she heard the sound of leaves rustling, 
took no notice, as being used often to have the beasts 
sport before her through the iield, they all being obe- 
dient to her call. He now grown bolder, though un- 
called, stood before her, but seemed only gazing on her 
in admiration: he often bowed his head, and his sleek 
shining neck like enamel; and fawning licked the 
ground she trod upon: at length his gentle dumb ex- 
pression drawed the eye of Eve to take notice of his 
play: he glad that he had gained her attention, making 
the serpents tongue or impulse of vocal air an instru- 
ment of speech, thus began his fraudulent temptation: 

Sovereign mistress! (who alone art wonderful) won- 
der not, much less arm thy mild looks with disdain, 
nor be displeased that I approach thee thus, and gaze 
on thee continually without thinking I can ever gaze 
enough; nor have I (thus singly) feared thy awful brow, 
much more awful now retired. Fairest resemblance 
of thy fair maker! all things living gaze on thee, being 
thine by gift, and adore thy heavenly beauty, which 
they behold with transport! best to be beheld where it 
might be universally admired; but here among these 
beasts, in this wild enclosure, (who are but rude be- 
holders, and incapable of discerning half what is fair 
in thee) except one Man, who sees thee? and what is 
one, for thee, who shouldest be seen a goddess among 
gods, and be adored and served by numberless angels, 
and have tjiem in thy daily train. 

So flattered the temper, and introduced himself: his 
words made some impression upon the heart of Eve, 
though she marvelled much at the voice; at length, not 
without amazement; she replied: 



ohap. ni. PARADISE LOS?. 303 

What can be the meaning of this? do I hear the 
the language of Man and human sense, expressed by 
the tongue of a brute? language, at least I thought, 
had been denied to beasts, whom God, on the day of 
their creation, created mute to all articulate sound: 
that they may indeed have understanding I debate 
within myself, for much reason often appears both in 
their looks and actions. I knew thee to be the sub-, 
tlest beast of the field, but did not know that serpents 
were endowed with human voice. Do this miracle 
once more, and say how thou becamest capable of 
speech; and why thou art grown so friendly to me 
above the rest of the beasts that are daily in sight? 
this tell me! for the relation of such a wonder will de- 
mand due attention. 

To whom the deceitful tempter replied thus: Re- 
splendent Eve! empress of this fair world! it is easy 
to me to Jell all thou hast commanded me, and right it 
is that thou shouldest be obeyed in every thing. At 
first I was like the other beasts that feed upon the trod- 
den grass; my thoughts were abject, and as low as my 
food, nor did I discern any thing but that, or differ- 
ence of sex, nor had I any apprehension of any thing 
great or high: until one day as I was roving in the 
field, I chanced to behold, at a great distance, a large 
tree full of fruit, of the fairest colours, streaked with 
red and gold: I drew nearer to view it, when a savoury 
odour was blown from the boughs, grateful to the ap- 
petite, and which pleased my sense more than the 
smell of sweetest fennel, or the teats of a goat or ewe, 
dropping with milk at evening, and yet unsucked by 
their kids or lambs: I resolved not to defer satisfying 
the sharp desire I had of tasting those fair apples; hun- 
ger and thirst (two powerful persuaders) quickened at 
the scent of that alluring fruit, both at once urged me 
so keenly^ I soon wound myself about the mossy trunk 

39 



300 PARADISE LOST. book ix. 

of the tree; (for the brandies are so high from the 
ground, that they would require thy utmost reach, or 
Adam's) about the tree all other beasts stood longing 
and envying with like desire, but could not reach the 
fruit. And now being got up into the middle of the 
tree, where such great plenty hung so nigh, tempting 
to gather, and eat my fill, I did not spare; for I never 
until that hour in eating or drinking had such pleasure. 
But at length being satisfied, it was not long before I 
perceived a strange alteration in me, and my inward 
powers changing to a degree of reason; and though I 
retained my present form, yet it was not long before I 
had the gift of speech. From thence forward I turned 
my thoughts to high or deep speculations, and with 
capacious mind considered every thing visible in earth 
or between; every thing that was fair and good; but 
in the rays of thy heavenly beauty, and in thy divine 
form, I behold every thing that is fair and good united: 
there is nothing fair that can be brought equal or in com- 
parison with thee! which was the cause that I came 
(though too importunate perhaps) to gaze, and wor- 
ship thee; who art rightly declared universal mistress, 
and sovereign of all creatures. 

So talked the cunning serpent; and Eve, more 
amazed than before, replied unwarily: Serpent! thy 
overpraising me leaves the virtue of that fruit in doubt, 
which thou hast first tasted. But tell me, where does 
this tree grow? and how far is it from hence? for the 
trees of Grod, that grow in Paradise, are a great many, 
and various of them, which are yet unknown to us; and 
our choice lies in such an abundance, that we leave 
the greatest part of the fruits untouched, and still hang- 
ing without decay, until more men grow up to be pro- 
vided for, and help to consume the gifts of nature. 

To whom the wily serpent cheerfully answered: 
Empress! the way is easy and not long; beyond a row 



jha*. in. PARADISE LOST. 30/ 

of myrtle trees upon a plain; just by a fountain, first 
passing one small thicket of flowing myrrh and balm; 
if thou pleasest to accept of me for a guide, I can soon 
conduct thee thither. Lead on then, said Eve. He 
going before, rolled along swiftly, and made intricate 
seem straight; being swift to do mischief: hope and 
joy elevated him, and brightened his crest: as when 
an Ignis fatuus, (y) (which it is said some evil spirit 
often attends) hovering and blazing with a deluding 
light, misleads the night wanderer through mires, or 
pools; so the serpent glittered, and led our credulous 
mother Eve into fraud; to the tree which was prohi- 
bited by God, and was the occasion of all our misery: 
which when she saw, she spoke thus to her guide: 

Serpent! we might have spared ourselves the trou- 
ble of coming hither; this fruit is not for me, though 
there be such an abundance: let the credit of its virtue 
remain still with thee; wonderful indeed, if it be the 
cause of such eifects! but we neither may taste of this 
tree, nor touch it: God commanded it so, and left that 
command the only one of obedience: as for the rest, 
we are a law to ourselves; our own reason is our law. 

To whom the tempter artfully replied: Indeed! hath 
God declared ye lords of all things in earth or air, and 
yet said, that ye shall not eat of the fruit of all the 
trees in this garden? to whom Eve (yet without sin) 
replied: 

We may eat of the fruit of every tree in the garden; 
but of this fair tree in the midst of it, God hath said, 
ye shall not eat thereof, neither shall ye touch it lest 
ye die. She had scarce said this, though but in few 
words, when the tempter, now grown bold (though 

{y) Ig n i s fatuus, i. e. a silly fire; and we call Jack in the 
Lanthorn, and Will with the Wisp: because it resembles those 
things. It is a compounded close united body of oily and sul 
phureous matter, and fired vapours, exhaled from the earth. 



308 PARADISE LOST. book ix. 

with show of zeal and love to Man, and indignation 
at the wrong he suffered) begins to put on a new part; 
and fluctuates about disturbed, as one moved to pas- 
sion; yet with decency, and as about to begin to speak 
of some great matter: as when of old some renowned 
orator in Athens, (z) or free Rome, where eloquence 
once flourished, stood collected in himself, and before 
he spoke, with various motions and gestures won upon 
the audience; sometimes beginning with a high voice, 
and coming immediately to the substance of the argu- 
ment, as through zeal too hasty to introduce it gradu- 
ally: so the tempter moving, standing or rearing up, 
thus passionately exclaimed: 

O wise, wisdom giving, and sacred plant, mother of 
science! now I clearly feel thy power within me; not 
only to discern things in their first causes, but to trace 
the ways of the highest agents, let them be thought ever 
so wise. Queen of this universe! do not believe those 
cruel threats of death; ye shall not die: how should 
ye die? by the fruit? no; that gives ye life to know- 
ledge: shall ye die by him who threatens? look on me, 

(*') Mhens; Heb. i. e. wisdom, Gr. i. e. oil; from Athen, 
another name of Minerva, the goddess of wisdom and inventress 
of oil; which bestowed her name upon this city; or from Athis, 
the daughter of Cranus, the second king of it, according to 
Justin, lib. 2. c. 6. Athens was the famous city and university 
of Greece, on the coast of Attica, the river of Cephissus upon 
the Egean sea, and once the universal school of mankind; where 
arts and sciences had their first advancement among the Greeks, 
under Socrates, Plato, and many other learned masters. It was 
built by Cecrops, the Egyptian, the first king of it, who lived 
in the days of Moses, about A.M. 2448. Before Jesus Christ 
1556 years, 780 before the first Olympiad, 375 before the siege 
of Troy: then it was called Cecropia, Gr. i. e. the city of Ce~ 
crops; and now Sentines and Athina, corruptly by the Turks; 
as they do almost all ancient names of men, cities, countries, 
Sfc. But now learning is quite lost there. The Venetians took 
it from the Turks, A. D. 1687. 



chap. m. PARADISE LOST. 309 

me! who have touched and tasted it, and not only live, 
but by venturing higher than my lot, have attained to 
a life and state more perfect that fate meant me. Shall 
that be denied to Man, which is free to brutes? or will 
God blow up his anger for such a petty tresspass, and 
not rather praise your dauntless virtue? whom the pain 
of threatened death (whatever strange thing death may 
be) did not deter from achieving what led to happier 
life, and the knowledge of good and evil? of good how 
just is the knowledge! and evil if there be any such 
thing as real evil) why should not that be known, 
since it might be the easier shunned? God therefore, 
if he be just, cannot hurt you; if he did he would be 
not just, not God; not feared then, nor obeyed; nor is 
it pain that you yourselves are afraid of, but death. 
Why then was this forbid? why, but to keep ye low, 
in awe and ignorance, that so ye might always wor- 
ship him. He knows, that in the day that ye eat of 
that fruit, your eyes (that though they seem clear to 
you, are very dim) shall then be perfectly opened and 
cleared; and ye shall be like gods, knowing both good 
and evil, in the same manner as they do: since I, by 
eating, am internally become rational as a Man; by 
like comparison, ye shall be as gods, rising to deity 
from human nature, as I from brutal to it. So it may 
be ye shall die, that is by putting off human nature, to 
become gods; if so, death were to be wished for, no 
matter how threatened; that brings no worse than this 
along with it: and what I pray are gods, that Man 
may not become, if he was to participate godlike food 
with them? the gods as they happened to be first, take 
that advantage to impose upon our belief, that every 
thing proceeds from them: now I question it; for I see 
this fair earth, as it is warmed by the sun, productive 
of every kind; but I see them produce nothing: if they 
made all things, who was it that put the knowledge of 



310 PARADISE LOST. book ix. 

good and evil into this tree, that whoso eats of the fruit, 
forthwith without their leave, attains knowledge and 
wisdom? and wherein lies the crime that Man should 
attain to knowledge this way? what hurt can your 
knowledge do him? or what can this tree impart against 
his will, if every thing is his? or is it envy? then I ask 

again, can envy dwell among gods? These, these, 

and many more reasons, prove the need you stand in 
of this fair fruit; then human goddess! gather it, and 
taste it freely. 

He ended; and his words, full of craft and deceit, 
found a too easy entrance into her heart: she fixed her 
eyes upon the fruit, and stood gazing, which only to 
see was strong temptation; and the sound of his per- 
suasive words was in her ear, seeming to her full of 
reason and truth: mean time it drew near the hour of 
Boon, which excited her appetite, raised by the deli- 
cious and savoury smell of that fruit; which occasion- 
ed her to look on it Avith longing eyes, and at length 
(being grown inclinable to touch or taste) with desire: 
yet pausing a while, she first said musing to herself: 

Doubtless thy virtues are great, thou best of fruits! 
and worthy to be held in admiration, though denied 
to Man; whose taste at once gave eloquence to the 
mute, and taught the tongue that was not made for 
speech, to speak thy praise. He also, who forbids ns 
thy use, does not conceal thy praise from us, naming 
thee the tree of knowledge, both of good and evil: then 
forbids us to taste! but his forbidding only commends 
thee the more, while it, acknowledges the good thou 
wouldst communicate to us, and discovers to us, what 
we want and are debarred from: for the good that we 
do not know, surely we have not; or if we have and 
do not know it, it is just the same thing, as if we had it 
not at all. In plain words then, what he forbids us is 
knowledge; forbids us that which is good, forbids us 



chap. in. PARADISE LOST. 311 

to be wise? such prohibitions are not binding. — But, 
if death should seize and bind us afterwards, what pro- 
fit shall we have from our inward freedom? in the day 
that we eat of this fair fruit, our doom is, " That Ave 

shall die." How does the serpent die? he has eat 

of it, and lives, and knows, and speaks, and reasons, 
and discerns; though he was irrational until then. 
Was death invented then only for us? or was this in- 
tellectual food prohibited us, to be preserved for the 
beasts? yes, for the beasts it seems! yet that one beast, 
which has tasted it first, he does not envy, but brings 
the good befallen liim, with joy in a friendly manner 
to men, without any deceit or guile. What am I 
afraid of then? or rather, what do I know to fear 
under sucli ignorance, of good and evil, of God or 
death, of law or penalty? here grows the cure of all, 
this divine fruit, beautiful to the eye, inviting to the 
taste, and whose virtue is, to make those who eat it 
wise! what hinders then, but that I gather of it, and 
at once feed both body and mind? 

So saying, in an evil hour reaching forth her hand 
to the fruit, she plucked and she eat. The whole earth 
felt the wound, and nature sighing through all her 
works, gave signs of woe that all was lost. The guil- 
ty serpent slunk back again to the thicket; which he 
might very easily do, without being observed by her, 
for she wholly intent upon her taste, minded nothing 
else; it seemed to her that she had never tasted fruit 
with such delight until then, whether it were true, or 
that she only fancied so, through her great expectation 
of high knowledge; nor was godhead from her thoughts 
and hopes. She eat greedily without restraint, and 
did not know that she was eating death: at length sa- 
tisfied, and her spirits lifted up as with wine, jocund, 
and gay, she thus pleasingly began to say to herself: 



212 PARADISE LOST. book ix, 

O sovereign, fullest of virtue, and most precious of 
all the trees in Paradise! blest in the power to operate 
knowledge, until now kept in obscurity, and unknown; 
and thy fair fruit suffered to hang, as created for no 
purpose: but henceforth (not without song and due 
praise every morning) my early care shall be to tend 
thee, and ease the fruitful burthen of thy full branches, 
which are freely offered to all; until by feeding on thee 
I grow ripe in knowledge, as the gods who know all 
things; though it appear by them, that others envy 
what they can not give; for if the gift had been theirs, 
it had never grown here. Experience next to know- 
ledge I owe to thee, thou best guide! for not following 
thee, I had remained in ignorance: thou openest the 
way of wisdom, and gavest access to her, though she 
may retire in secret: perhaps I am in secret; heaven 
is a great way off, very high, and it is remote from 
thence to see dictinctly every thing upon earth; and 
perhaps some other care may have diverted our great 
forbidder from his continual watch, safe with all his 
spies about him.- But in what manner shall I ap- 
pear to Adam? shall I as yet make my change known 
to him, and let him partake full happiness with me? 
or rather not do it, but keep the odds of knowledge 
in my own power without an equal partner? and so 
make an addition of what is wanting in the female sex, 
to draw his love the more, and render me more his 
equal; and perhaps (which is a thing very desirable) 
sometimes his superior; for being inferior, who is free? 

this may do well. But what if God has seen me, 

and death should follow? then I shall be no more! and 
Adam will be wedded to another Eve, and live enjoy- 
ing all happiness with her, when I am dead: O it is 
death to think of that! then I am confirmed in my re- 
solution, that xidam shall share with me in happiness 
or misery: so dearly I love him, that I could endure 
all death with him, nor would live any life without him, 



chap, iv, PARADISE LOST. 313 



CHAPTER IV. 

Eve brings of the fruit to Adam, he eats also; the effects thereof 
on them both. 

Saying this, Eve turned from the tree, having 
first bowed low to it, as in reverence to the power that 
dwelt within; who had infused into the plant, what 
could communicate knowledge, and fit to he partook 
of by gods. Mean time Adam, waiting for and desir- 
ing her return, had wove a garland of the choicest 
flowers to adorn her hair, and crown her, after her ru- 
ral labour, as reapers are accustomed to do their har- 
vest queen: he promised great joy to himself, and new 
delight at her return, which was so long delayed; yet 
his heart foreboding something ill, often misgave him, 
and he felt it fail him; so that he went forth to meet 
herein the way that she took that morning, w hen they 
first parted. He could not pass any other way, but 
by the tree of knowledge, and there he met her just 
returning from it; in her hand she had a bough of fair- 
est fruit with the down on it, just gathered, of beauti- 
ful appearance and delicious fragrancy. She hasted 
to him, and in her face seemed to carry an excuse, and 
an apology for what was done; which with pleasing 
words, that to her were never wanting, she thus ad- 
dressed Adam: 

Hast thou not wondered at my stay? I have missed 
thee, and thought it long, deprived of thy presence; I 
have had such anxiety of mind, such agony of love, 
which I never knew until now, nor ever will again; for 
I never more intend to try (what I now rashly have) 
what pain there is in being absent from thee. But 
strange and wonderful to hear hath been the cause: 

40 



814 PARADISE LOST. book ix. 

this tree is not, as we have been told, dangerous to 
taste of, nor opening the way to any unknown evil; 
but of divine effect to open their eyes, and make them 
gods, who taste of it, and such it has been tasted. The 
wise serpent (either not forbid like us, or else not obey- 
ing) he hath eaten of the fruit; and is not become dead, 
as we were threatened; but instead of that, endowed 
with human voice and sense, reasoning to admiration! 
and with such persuasion hath so wrought and pre- 
vailed with me, that I have tasted too, and have found 
the effects to correspond too with me; my eyes that were 
before dim, grown opener; my spirits dilated, my heart 
enlarged, and I growing up to godhead: which I chief- 
ly sought for thee, and can despise without thee; for 
happiness is only so to me, while thou hast part; it 
would soon grow tedious and odious, if thou didsl not 
share it with me: therefore do thou taste too, that the 
same lot may join us, equal joy, and equal love; lest, 
if thou taste not, difference of degree should separate 
us, and I too late should desire to renounce deity for 
thy sake, when fate will not permit it. 

Thus Eve told her story with a cheerful counte- 
nance; but there was something like dissimulation and 
shame, flushing on her cheek. Adam, on the other 
side, as soon as he heard of the fatal trespass commit- 
ted by Eve, stood astonished and confounded, while a 
cold horror ran through all his veins, and relaxed his 
joints. The garland he had wreathed for Eve he let 
fall out of his hand, and shed all the faded roses; he 
remained speechless and pale, until at length he first 
to himself broke inward silence: 

O fairest part of creation! the last and best of all 
God's works! a creature who excelled whatever can 
be formed either to sight or thought, of holy, divine, 
good, amiable, or sweet! how art thou lost, how on a 
sudden defaced and robbed of innocence, now devoted 



uhap. iv. PARADISE LOST. 315 

to death! or rather, how hast thou yielded to trans- 
gress the strict command, and to violate the sacred for- 
bidden fruit! some cursed fraud yet unknown, of our 
enemy hath beguiled thee, and with thee hath ruined 
me: for certain my resolution is to die with thee! how 
can I live without thee! how can I forego thy conver- 
sation, sweetened and endeared by love, to live again 
forlorn and alone in these wild woods! should God 
create another Eve, and I for that end part with ano- 
ther rib, yet the loss of thee would ever remain at my 
heart! No, no! I feel the ties of nature bind me; thou 
art bone of my bone, and flesh of my flesh, and from 
thy state mine shall never be parted, be it happiness 
or misery! 

Having said this to himself, as one after some sad 
dismay a little comforted, and submitting, after disturb- 
ed thoughts, to what seemed without remedy, in a calm, 
considerate, and melancholy manner he turned himself 
to Eve. 

Adventurous Eve! (said he) thou hast persumed to 
do a very bold deed, and provoked great peril, who 
hast thus dared, had it been only coveting to look upon 
that fruit, sacred to abstinence; much more to taste it, 
or touch it without incurring the penalty of a curse. 
But who can recall what is past, or undo what is done? 
not God Almighty, nor fate! yet so it is, that perhaps 
thou shalt not die; for perhaps the fact is not so hei- 
nous now, the fruit being tasted by the serpent before, 
by him profaned, made common, and unhallowed; it 
is not found deadly yet on him, he yet lives, and as 
thou saidest has gained a higher degree of life, to live 
as a Man; a strong inducement to us, as being likely 
on our tasting it, to find a proportionable effect; which 
can not be, except we become gods, angels, ordemi-gods. 
Nor can I think that God, though he has threatened 
it, will in earnest destroy us in such a manner, who 



316 PARADISE LOST. book ix. 

are the prime of all his creatures, dignified so high, 
and set over all his works; which as they were created 
for us, and made dependent onus, must needs fail in oar 
fall: so God shall uncreate his creation, be frustrated 
in his design, do and undo, and lose his labour, which 
is not well conceived of God; who (though he had 
power to make a new creation) yet he would be loath 
to abolish us, lest the enemy should triumph and say, 
" Their state is very fickle that God favours most! 
who can please him long? me he ruined first, now man- 
kind; whom will he ruin next?" which is a matter of 
scorn not to be given to the foe. However, I have fix- 
ed my lot, and resolve to undergo the same fate as 
thee: if death is to be thy portion, then death is to me 
as life: I feel the bond of nature within my heart, so for- 
cibly draw me to my own part in thee; for what thou 
art is mine, our state cannot be divided, we are one, 
one flesh, and to lose thee were to lose myself. 

Thus spoke Adam; and Eve made him this reply: O 
exceeding great and glorious trial of love, high example 
and illustrious evidence, engaging me to emulate! but 
how shall I, Adam, being inferior in nature, attain to 
thy perfection? from whose dear side I boast that I am 
sprung, and gladly hear thee speak of our union, that 
we both have but one heart and one soul, of which this 
day affords good proof; declaring thee resolved, rather 
than death, or any thing more dreadful than death shall 
separate us (who are linked together in such dear love) 
to undergo with me one guilt and one crime (if it be 
any crime) of tasting this fair fruit, whose virtue 
(which at least is some good) hath presented this hap- 
py trial of thy love; which else had never been known 
so eminently. If I thought death would be the conse- 
quence of this my attempt, I would suffer the worst 
alone, and rather die forsaken of thee, than tie thee to 
me with an action, that might afterward give thee soi% 



hap. iv. PARADISE LOST. 31? 

row; chiefly having so remarkable and late an assur- 
ance of thy true, faithful, and unequalled love. But 
I feel the event far otherwise; not death, but additional 
life, new hopes, new joys, and new knowledge: so di- 
vine a taste has touched my sense, that every thing that 
was sweet before, seems flat and harsh to this. Taste 
freely, Adam, on my experience, and deliver all fear 
of death to the winds! 

So saying, she embraced him, and wept tenderly 
for joy; much moved that he had raised his love to 
such a noble height, as to incur divine displeasure or 
death for her sake. In recompense (for such a bad 
compliance as his merited no better) she gave him with a 
plentiful hand, from the bough of that fair enticing tree: 
he eat without scruple against his better knowledge; 
not deceived in the least, but fondly overcome witli fe- 
male charms and enticements. The earth trembled, 
as it had done before when Eve eat, and nature gave a 
second groan; the sky lowered, it thundered, and 
some drops fell at the completing of the mortal ori- 
nal sin; (a) while Adam kept eating his fill, and took 

(a) Original sin, is that guilt which Christians suppose to 
be derived from Adam and Eve to all their posterity. They 
endeavour to prove it from Job xix. 4. " Who can bring a 
" clean thing out of an unclean? not one." Psal. li. 7. " Where- 
" fore as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by 
" sin: and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sin- 
" ned." Ephes. ii. 3. " Among whom also we had our con- 
" versation in times past, in the lusts of our flesh, fulfiling the 
" desires of the flesh, a.nd of the mind; and were by nature the 
" children of wrath, even as others." From the degeneracy 
and corruption of all nations; the natural proneness of all men 
to vice and immorality; their aversion to piety and virtue, and 
the perfections and happiness of Adam and Eve, before they 
committed this sin, compared with disorderly passions, fear, 
guilt, shame, confusion, misery, mortality, loss of God ? s favour, 
expulsion out of Paradise. &c, St. Austin first called it origi- 
nal sin. 



318 PARADISE LOST. book ix. 

no thought; neither was Eve afraid to commit her for- 
mer crime again, the more to sooth him with her he- 
loved society; that now both being intoxicated, as it 
were with new wine, they became quite full of mirth, 
and fancy that they feel divinity within them, producing 
that which would make them scorn the earth. But that 
false fruit first shewed a quite different operation, en- 
flaming them with carnal desire; he began to cast las- 
civious eyes upon Eve, which glances she as wantonly 
repaid; until they burnt in the sinful passion of lust; 
and Adam thus began to express it to Eve: 

Now Eve, I see that thou art of an exact and ele- 
legant taste, which is no small part of knowledge; 
since we apply and refer all different savours to the 
judgmemt of the palate, which if nice, we say is judi- 
cious; so well hast thou made provision for this day, 
that I yield the praise to thee. We have lost a great 
deal of pleasure, while we abstained from this delight- 
ful fruit, nor until now have knoAvn the true relish 
of taste: if there be such a pleasure in things forbidden 
us, it might be wished that for this one tree we had 
been forbidden ten. But come, now we are so well re- 
freshed, let us seek pastime as it cannot but be agree- 
able after such delicious fare; for never since the day 
I saw thee first, and Avedded thee, adorned with all 
perfection, did thy beauty so inflame my sense with 
desire to enjoy thee: thou seemest fairer to me now 
than ever; all which is owing to the virtue of this tree. 

He said thus, and did not forbear glances or wanton 
motions of amorous intent; which were now well under- 
stood by Eve, whose eye darted the contagious fire of 
lust. He seized her hand, and led her (she being for- 
ward to go) to a shady bank, covered thick over head 
with thick branches; their bed was of various flow- 
ers: there they took their fill of love and play, the 
seal of their mutual guilt, and the solace of their sin; 



chap. iv. PARADISE LOST. 319 

until sleep oppressed them, they being wearied with 
dalliance and amorous sport. 

As soon as the foree of that fallacious fruit was ex- 
haled, that with exhilerating vapour had played about 
their spirits, and led their inmost powers into error; 
and grosser sleep, bred of unkindly fumes, and encum- 
bered with conscious dreams, had now left them; they 
rose up, not refreshed, but weary as if they had not 
slept; and each veiwing the other, soon found how 
their eyes were opened, and their minds how darken- 
ed! innocence was gone, that like a veil had shadow- 
ed them from knowing evil; just confidence, native 
righteousness and honour, were gone from about them, 
and they were left naked to guilty shame. Adam cover- 
ed himself, but his covering was still more shame: 
so rose Sampson (b) from the lap of Dalilah, (c) that 
harlot he had taken from among the Philistines, and 
waked deprived of his strength; so Adam and Eve wak- 
ed, destitute and bare of all their virtue: they sat a long 
time with countenances confused, as though they had 

(b) Samson, or Shimson, Heb. i. e. hear the second time: be- 
cause the angel was intreated to come to his parents; a second 
time, to let them hear of his conception, manner of life and 
mighty deeds. He was the twelfth and last of the judges of 
Israel: succeeded Abdon, judged that people twenty years, and 
died A.M. 2887. before Jesus Christ, about eleven hundred and 
seventeen years. 

(c) Dalilah; Heb. i. e. a consumer. Josephus calls her Da- 
lale, and the Greeks Dalida, which doth not alter the significa- 
tion of the word. A woman that lived in the valley of Soreck, 
which lies upon the banks of the river Soreck, Heb. i. e. a myr- 
tle branch: because many myrtles grew there. This valley was 
about twelve miles from Jerusalem, on the west, but belonged 
to the Philistines. Samson's mistress and betrayer, Judg. xvi. 
4, 5. St. Chrysostom, Cassian, St. Ephrem, Pererius, Sulpi- 
tius, Severus, &c. think she was his wife. But Josephus, St. 
Ambrose, St. Jerom, Serrarius, &c. believe otherways. 



330 PARADISE LOST. book ix, 

been struck dumb; until Adam, though no less abash- 
ed than Eve, at length forced utterance to these words: 

O Eve! it was in an ill hour that thou gavest ear to 
that false serpent, whoever taught him to counterfeit 
Man's voice; the truth being that we are fallen, but 
our promised rising false; since we find, that indeed 
our eyes are opened, and find that we know both good 

and evil! Good lost, and evil got! A very bad 

fruit of knowledge, if this be to know; this, which 
leaves us thus naked, void of honour, innocence, faith, 
and purity, our usual ornaments, now all defiled and 
stained! and evident in our faces the signs of foul con- 
cupiscence; whence comes store of evil, even shame, 
the utmost evil; and be assured many lesser will at- 
tend. How shall I henceforth behold the face of 

God, or any of the angels, so often seen heretofore with 
joy and rapture? those heavenly shapes will now daz- 
zle me with the blaze of their brightness, which I am 
no longer able to bear. O! that I might live savage 
here in solitude, hid in some thick shade, not to be pe- 
netrated by the light of the sun or stars; where high- 
est trees spread their broad shades, and darken the 
night! Cover me, ye pines! hide me, ye cedars, with 
innumerable boughs, where I may never see God or 

angel more! But now let us, in this bad condition 

w r e are in, contrive what may best serve for the present, 
to hide those parts of ours each from the other, that are 
unseemliest and seem most obnoxious to shame: let us 
find some tree, whose broad smooth leaves joined to- 
gether, and girded upon our loins, may cover all round 
those middle parts; that this new comer Shame, may 
not continually reproach us as unclean. 

Adam counselled thus, and they both went together 
into the thickest wood; there they soon chose the fig-tree; 
not that which is esteemed for its fruit, but such as at 



ohap. iv. PARADISE LOST. SM 

this clay (known to the Indians in Malabar, (d) or 
Decan) (e) spreads branching so broad and long, that 
the bended twigs take root in the ground, and grow 
round about the body of the tree, from whence they first 
shot forth; which makes a shade like rows of pillars 
arched high over, and having walks between; there the 
Indian herdsmen often shunning the heat shelter them- 
selves, and tend their herds as they feed, cutting a 
passage through the thick shade. The leaves of those 
trees they gathered, which were very broad, and with 
what skill they had sewed them together, to gird their 
waists. Vain covering, if designed to hide their guilt, 
and the shame that they dreaded! O how unlike to 
their first naked glory! just so Columbus (/) found 

(d) Malabar; Indian. A vast country of India, lying along 
the west coast of the Peninsula from Cape Comorin, over against 
the island of Ceylon, to Canara, on this side of the Ganges; in 
length about 180 leagues, or 324 miles; but no where above 
100 in breadth; and the most fruitful, temperate and populous 
region in the world. It contained formerly several kingdoms, 
which in the time of Sarma Perimal, about 730 years ago, were 
all subject to one sovereign: he embraced Muhammedanism, 
divided his kingdom among his relations, and went in devotion 
to Mecca, and died there; but many of the people are Pagans 
still, and others have embraced Christianity of late, by the mis- 
sionaries sent thither by the king of Denmark in 1706. 

(e) Decan; Ind. i. e. the south. A royal city of a kingdom 
of the same name in India, belonging to Malabar, in many is- 
lands, on this side the Ganges. It has Bengal on the east, the 
Indian sea on the west; Bisnagar on the south, and the Mogul's 
country on the north. There, these broad leaved fig trees grow 
in great abundance, which Milton hints at here: the leaves of 
the bomona-tree in Peru are four or five feet long, and about 
two feet wide. Another grows there, which is about twelve 
feet long and five broad, which the natives use for a table-cloth. 

(/) Columbus; Gr. Lat. i. e. a dove. Christopher Columbus 
or Colon, born in Cugureo, but others say at Neray, near Ge* 
noa in Italy. He from his own knowledge in geography, and 
41 



%%% PARADISE LOST. book ix. 

the Americans, (g) only girt round with feathers; who 
else were naked and wild among the trees, on islands, 
or by the sea shore. Adam and Eve having made 
these aprons, and as they thought in part covered their 
shame, were nevertheless not at rest or ease in their 
minds, but they sat them down to weep. Not only 
tears fell from their eyes, but high storms began to 
rise within, high passions, anger, hate, mistrust, sus- 
picion, and discord, which sorely shook the inward 

from the information of an old sailor Alphonsus Santrius (whom 
lie saved in a shipwreck) discovered America, under the name 
and aid of Ferdinand king of Spain, A.D. 1492. But it was first 
discovered about 300 years before, A. D. 1170, by Madoc a 
valiant prince and son of Owen Gninneth king of Wales; as is 
related by Lynwric Ap Grano, Galyn Owen, Peter Martyr, 
Humphrey Lloyd, David Powell, Sir John Price, Richard 
Haekluyt, Sir Thomas Herbert, &c. which was farther confirm- 
ed by the reverend Mr. Morgan Jones, Chaplain of South Caro- 
lina, who lived four months with the Doeg Indians, and convers- 
ed with them in the old British language. Lastly, that prince 
Madoc was buried in Mexico, appears by the epitaph on his 
monument lately found there. See the Gloucester Journal and 
Daily Post, &c. March 6. 1740. After all the service done to 
Spain, Columbus was buried at Sevil, with contempt. 

(g*) Americans; the people of America; so called from Ame- 
ricus Vespucci or Vespusius, a Florentine, who discovered this 
new world, A. D. 1597. and five years after Columbus. Ame- 
rica is surrounded with the ocean on all sides, and is not conti- 
guous to Asia; as the Russians have lately discovered. It is 
as large as the three known quarters of the world; for Mexico 
(or North America) is reckoned by some to be about 23,000 
miles, and Peru (or South America) 17,000 miles in compass: 
that is, if all the land upon gulfs, promontories and islands 
were duly measured. It contains from N. to S. about 8220 
miles, and from E. to W. 6540 miles. Plato, Aristotle, Diodo- 
rus Sieulus, and other ancients gave some dark hints of Ame- 
rica; and other authors affirm that the old Carthaginians 
traded to it. But how could that be done without the use of 
the compass and other helps of navigation, not known to the 
ancients? 



u'Haf. it. PARADISE LOST. 323 

state of their minds, that once were quite calm and full 
of peace, now restless and turbulent; for the under- 
standing ruled no longer, nor did the will take it any 
longer for a guide, but was in subjection now to sen- 
sual appetite, who usurping, claimed a superior sway 
over sovereign reason. Adam, from a breast thus dis- 
tempered, estranged in look, and in a different style, 
again renewed his speech to Eve: 

I wish thou hadst hearkened to what I said, and 
stayed with me as I besought thee, when that strange 
desire of wandering this unhappy morning, 1 know not 
whence, possessed thee! we had then remained hap- 
py still; not as we are now, despoiled of all our good, 

shamed, naked, and miserable. Henceforth, let 

none seek needless causes to prove the faith they owe; 
but conclude, when they earnestly seek such proof, 
that then they begin to fail in their duty. To whom 
Eve, soon moved with Adam's laying the blame upon 
her, thus answered: 

Adam, what very severe words have passed thy lips? 
wilt thou impute that to my default, or will of wan- 
dering (as thou callest it) which, who knows, might 
have happened as ill if thou hadst been by, or perhaps 
have happened to thee, hadst thou been there, or had 
the attempt been made here? thou thyself conldest not 
have discerned any fraud in the serpent, speaking as 
he spoke; there was no ground of enmity known be- 
tween us, why should he mean me any ill, or do me 
any harm? what, was I never then to have parted 
from thy side? as well I might have grown there still 
one of thy ribs, and lifeless! being as I am, and thou 
the head, why didst not thou absolutely command me 
not to go, especially going into such danger as thou 
saidest? but thou wert too easy then, and didst not 
much oppose me; nay, thou didst permit me to go, ap- 
prove of my going, and dismissed me fairly: hadst thou 



824 PARADISE LOST. book ix. 

been firm and fixed (as thou oughtest to have been) in 
withholding me then had not I transgressed, nor thou 
with me. 

To whom then Adam (the first time of his being an- 
gry) replied: Is this thy love, and this the recompense 
of mine to thee, which I proved unchangeable, un- 
grateful Eve! when thou wert lost, not I, who might 
have lived and enjoyed immortal happiness; yet will- 
ingly rather chose death with thee: and am 1 now up- 
braided, as the cause of thy transgression? — I was 
not, it seems, severe enough in my restraint! — What 
could I do more? I warned thee, I counselled and ad- 
monished thee, told thee before-hand of the danger, and 
the larking enemy that lay in wait: what I had done 
beyond this had been force, and force can have no 
effect upon free will. But then confidence bore thee 
on; thou thoughtest thyself very secure, either to meet 
no danger at all, or else to find matter of glory in the 
trial: and perhaps I was also in an error, in admiring 
too much what seemed in thee to be so very perfect, 
that I thought nothing evil durst make an attempt upon 
thee; but I rue that error now, which is become my 

crime, and thou become my accuser too! Thus 

shall it happen to Man, who putting too much confidence 
in the worth of Woman, lets her will rule; she will 
not bear to be restrained; and yet if she is left to her- 
self, and any evil ensue from thence, she will first ac- 
cuse his weak indulgence of her.- — -Thus they spent 
the hours in mutual accusation of each other; but nei- 
ther of them would condemn themselves, and there 
appeared no end to their vain and fruitless contention* 



THE TENTH BOOK 



OF 



PARADISE LOST, 



THE ARGUMENT. 

Man's transgression known, the guardian angels forsake Para- 
dise, and returning up to heaven are approved of; God de- 
clared that the entrance of Satan could not be by them pervent- 
ed. He sends his Son to judge the transgressors; who de- 
scends, and gives sentence accordingly; in pity clothes them 
both, and reascends. Sin and Death sitting until then at the 
gates of hell, by wonderous sympathy, feeling the success of 
Satan in this new world, and the sin by man there committed^ 
resolved to sit no longer in hell, but to follow Satan their 
father up to the place of Man: to make the way easy from hell 
to this world to and fro, they pave a broad highway or bridge 
over Chaos, according to the track that Satan first made; 
then preparing for earth, they meet him, proud of success 
returning to hell: their mutual congratulation: Satan ar- 
rives at Pandemonium; in full assembly relates with boast- 
ing his success against Man; instead of applause is enter- 
tained with a general hiss by all his audience, transformed, 
with him also, suddenly into serpents, according to his doom 
given in Paradise: then deluded with a show of the forbidden 
tree springing up before them, they greedily reaching to taste 
of the fruit, chew dust and bitter ashes. The proceedings 



336 THE ARGUMENT. 

of Sin and Death; God foretells the final victory of his Son 
over them, and the renewing of all things; hut, for the pre- 
sent commands his angels to make several alterations in the 
heavens and elements. Adam more and more perceiving 
his fallen condition heavily bewails; rejects the condolement 
of Eve; she persists, and at length appeases him; then to 
evade the curse likely to fall on their offspring proposes 
to Adam violent ways which he approves not; hut, con- 
ceiving better hope, puts her in mind of the late promise, 
that her seed should be revenged on the Serpent; and ex- 
horts her with him to seek peace of the offended Deity, by 
repentance and supplication. 



CHAPTER I. 

The guardian angels leave Paradise on Man's transgression: God 
thereupon sends his Son to judge the transgressors. 

Mean while the despiteful and heinous action of 
Satan, which he had done in Paradise, was known in 
heaven, and how he having possessed the serpent had 
perverted Eve, and she her husband, to taste the fatal 
forbidden fruit: for what can escape the eye of God, 
who sees every thing, or deceive him who knows all 
things? who just and wise in all his ways, did not 
hinder Satan from attempting to corrupt the mind of 
Man, who was armed with free will and strength, 
completely sufficient to have discovered and repulsed 
all stratagems whatever, either of foe or pretended 
friend: for still they knew, and ought ever to have 
remembered the high injunction, not to taste of that 
fruit whoever tempt them; which they not obeying, in- 
curred (and what could they do less? the penalty; and 
having in that one sin committed rebellion, disobedi- 
ence, pride, sensuality, and ingratitude, they deserved 
to fall. 

The angels, whose charge it was to guard Paradise, 
ascend from thence in haste up into heaven, silent and 
sorrowful for man; for by this time they knew his fallen 
state, much wondering how the subtle fiend had found 
entrance into Paradise unseen. As soon as the un- 
welcome news arrived from earth to the gates of hea- 
ven, all were displeased who heard it: that time, dim 



328 PARADISE LOST. book x. 

sadness did not spare heavenly faces; yet, as it was 
mixed with pity, it did not lessen their bliss. The an- 
gels crowded about those who were just arrived from 
earth,, to hear and know how every thing befell: they 
made haste towards the supreme throne, to give the 
account, and make appear with just plea their utmost 
diligence, which was well approved of; when the most 
high eternal Father uttered his voice thus in thunder, 
from amidst his secret cloud. 

Ye assembled angels, and powers returned from 
your unsuccessful charge! do not be dismayed nor 
troubled at these bad tidings from the earth, which 
could not be prevented by your sincerest care, you be- 
ing lately foretold what would come to pass, when first 
Satan crossed the gulf from hell. I told ye then, that 
he should prevail, and succeed in his bad purpose; that 
Man should be seduced and flattered out of all, by rea- 
son of his believing lies against his Maker; no decree 
of mine concurring to necessitate his fall, or in the least 
have any impulse upon his free will, which was left in 
even balance to its own inclination: but he is fallen; 
and now what remains, but that the mortal sentence 
should pass on his transgression? — Death was threat- 
ened to be inflicted on him the day that he transgressed, 
which he already presumes vain and void, because yet 
not inflicted (as he was afraid) by some immediate 
stroke; but he soon shall find, before the day is finish- 
ed, that forbearance is no acquittance: justice shall not 
return scorned, as bounty has. But whom do I send to 
judge them? whom but thee, my Son and vicegerent? 
to thee I have made over all judgment, whether in 
heaven, or earth, or hell. It may easily be seen, that 
I intend mercy to be a companion with justice, when I 
send thee, the friend of Man, his mediator, (a) his de- 

(«.) Mediator; Fr. Ital. Sp. from the Lat. i. e. one that is in 
the middle between two different persons; a manager between 



chap. i. PARADISE LOST. 329 

signed and voluntary ransom and redeemer (who is to 
take upon himself the nature of Man) to judge fallen 
Man. 

So spake the almighty Father; and unfolding his 
bright glory toward the right hand, shone forth his 
whole deity on his Son; in whom that glory which in 
the Father was invisible, was express and manifest; 
and who divinely gave this mild answer: 

Eternal Father! it is thou who art to make decrees; 
it is my part, both in heaven and earth, to obey thy 
supreme will; that thou in me, thy beloved Son, mayest 
always be well pleased. I go to judge those, who have 
transgressed thy law on earth; but thou knowest, who- 
ever is judged, the worst must light upon me, in the 
fulness of time; for so I undertook before thee, and 
now not repenting, obtain this of right, that I may 
mitigate their doom, which is to fall on me: yet I shall 
so temper justice with mercy, as may shew them both 
to be fully satisfied, and appease thee. There will be 
no need of attendance or train, where none are to be- 
hold the judgment, but those two who are to be judged: 
Satan convicted by flight, and rebel to all law, is 
best condemned when absent; for conviction does not 
belong to the serpent. 

Thus saying, he rose from his radiant seat of glory, 
high and equal to the Father: thrones and powers, 
princedoms and dominations ministering to him, ac- 
companied him to the gate of heaven; from whence 
Eden and all the coast lay in prospect: straight he 
descended down: (the speed of gods cannot be mea- 
sured by time, though it may be thought to move 
ever so swiftly.) Now the sun was descending towards 

persons at variance; an intercessor, a peace maker. Before sin, 
Adam had free access to God; but it made him so abominable 
and odious to the infinite holiness of the Deity, that he could not 
be acceptable, without an advocate and intercessor. 
42 



330 PARADISE LOST. book x. 

the west after noon, and gentle breeze s, at tlieir due 
hour, rose to cool and refresh the earth, and bring on 
the evening; when he, his wrath more assuaged, came 
both the mild judge and intercessor, to pass sentence 
upon Man. Adam and Eve heard the voice of the Lord 
God, walking in the garden in the cool of the day, 
brought to their ears by soft winds; they heard, and 
hid themselves from his presence among the thickest 
trees in the garden, both man and wife; until God ap- 
proaching, thus called aloud to Adam: 

Adam! where art thou? thou wert used to meet my 
coming with joy, and see me far off; I am not pleased 
that I miss thee here, and am entertained with solitude, 
where (as it was obviously thy duty) thou used to ap- 
pear before me uncalled for: or do I come less conspi- 
cuous? or what change in thee causes thy absence? or 
what chance detains thee? Come forth! 

At that call he came forth, and Eve with him, more 
unwilling than he, though she had been the first to of- 
fend; they were both in a state of discomposure, and 
out of countenance: there was no love in their looks, 
either to God or one another; but apparent guilt, shame, 
perturbation, despair, anger, obstinacy, hate, and guile; 
when Adam, after faultering a great while, thus briefly 
answered. 

I heard thee in the garden, and I was afraid, be- 
cause I was naked, and hid myself. To whom the 

gracious judge, without reproach, made answer. — — 
Thou hast often heard my voice and hast not been 
afraid, but always rejoiced; how is it become now so 
dreadful to thee? who hath told thee that thou art- 
naked? hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I com- 
manded thee that thou shouldest not eat? 

To whom Adam, sorely beset, replied: O heaven! 
in sad diniculty I stand this day before my judge; ei- 
ther to undergo the total punishment of the crime my- 



chap. i. PARADISE LOST. 331 

self, or else to accuse my other self, she who is the 
partner of my life; whose failings, while she remains 
faithful to me, I should conceal, and not expose to 
blame by ray complaint. But strict necessity and ca- 
lamitous restraint overcome me, lest both sin and pun- 
ishment, however insupportable they may be, fall whol- 
ly upon my head; though should I be silent, thouwould- 

est easily discover what I concealed. This woman, 

whom thou madest to be my help, and gavest to me as 
thy perfect gift, so good, so fit, so acceptable, so divine, 
that from her hand I could not expect any ill; and what 
she did, let it in itself be what it would, her very do- 
ing it seemed to justify the deed; she gave me of the 
tree, — and I did eat! 

To whom the sovereign presence of the Son of God 
made this reply: Was she thy god? or was she made 
thy guide or superior? nay, was she made equal to 
thee? that thou shouldest resign thy manhood to her, 
and the place where God had set thee above her, who 
was made of thee and for thee: thy perfection far ex- 
celled her's in all real dignity: she indeed was adorned 
with much beauty, and amiable to attract thy love, not 
thy subjection; and her gifts were such as appeared 
well under government, but unseemly to bear rule; 
which was thy part, hadst thou known thyself as thou 
oughtest to have done. Having said thus, he spoke to 
Eve in few words, Say, Woman, what is this which 
thou hast done? to whom sad Eve, almost overwhelm- 
ed with shame, soon confessing, yet not bold or talka- 
tive before her judge, thus replied with downcast looks: 
—The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat! 

Which when the Lord God heard, he proceeded 
without delay to give judgment on the accused serpent, 
who for want of understanding and speech, was not 
able to transfer the blame from himself to Satan, who 
had made him an instrument for mischief, and polluted 



332 PARADISE LOST. book x. 

Mm from the end of his creation; who was then justly 
accursed, as being vitiated in nature. To know more 
did not concern Man, nor alter his offence; yet God at 
last applied his doom to Satan, though in mysterious 
terms as he then judged best, and thus let his curse 
fall upon the serpent: 

Because thou hast done this, thou art accursed above 
ail cattle, and above every beast of the Held; upon thy 
belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days 
of thy life: I will put enmity between thee and the 
Woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall 
bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel. 

So spoke this oracle, (b) which are verified and ac- 
complished, when Jesus, (c) the son of Mary (who is 
the second Eve) saw Satan the prince of the air, fall 
down from heaven like lightning; then rising from his 
grave, having spoiled principalities and powers, he 
made a show of them openly, triumphing over them, 
and with bright ascension led captivity captive through 
the air, the very realm so long usurped by Satan, whom 
he shall tread at last under our feet; even he, who at 
this time foretold his fatal bruise; and to the Woman 
he gave sentence thus: 

(b) Oracle; Fr. Ital. Span. Dut. Brit. Lat. i. e. an answer 
from the mouth; an answer or counsel concerning things to come, 
given by God to his people of old, by prophets, inspiration, an 
audible voice, dreams, visions, Urim, and Thummim, &c. which 
were imitated in the answers made in the oracles of Delphi, Do- 
dona, &c. making the blind heathens believe that they were 
spoke by the mouth of God. 

(c) Jesus; Heb. i. e. a saviour. A proper name among the 
Jews; the first was Joshua or Jesus the son of Nun, the succes- 
sor of Moses, Acts vii. 45. " Which also our fathers that came 
" after, brought in with Jesus into the possession of the Gen- 
" tiles, whom God drove out before the face of our fathers, unto 
" the days of David." And of many others; but here, Jesus the 
son of the Virgin Mary. 



chap. i. PARADISE LOST. 333 

I will greatly multiply thy sorrow by thy concep- 
tion; in sorrow shalt thou bring forth children; unto 
thy husband's will thine shall submit, for he shall rule 
over thee. 

Lastly upon Adam he thus pronounced judgment: 
Because thou hast hearkened to the voice of thy wife, 
and hast eat of the tree of which I commanded thee, 
saying, thou shalt not eat of it, curst be the ground for 
thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of 
thy life: thorns also and thistles it shall bring forth 
to thee, and thou shalt eat of the herb of the field. In 
the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, until thou 
return unto the ground, for thou wast taken out of the 
ground; dust thou art, and unto dust thou shalt return 
again. 

So he judged Man, being sent both Judge and Sa- 
viour, and put far off the present sentence of death, 
which was pronounced on that day: then pitying 
them, to see how they stood before him, exposed to 
the naked air; (that now was likewise about to suffer 
change) he did not disdain, thenceforth, to assume the 
form of a servant: as when he washed his servants' 
feet; so now, as the father of his family, he covered 
their nakedness with the skins of beasts; which either 
had slain one another (as since the fall they began to 
do) or else were such as had been shed by snakes, or 
such creatures as change their old skins for new ones, 
and did not think much to clothe his enemies; nor did 
he only clothe their nakedness with the skins of beasts, 
but arraying their inward nakedness (which was much 
more shameful) with his robe of righteousness covered 
it from the sight of his Father. With swift ascent he 
returned up to him, into his blissful bosom, sitting in 
glory as of old; and to the omniscient Father, now ap- 
peased, recounted all that had passed with Man, mix- 
ins: sweet intercession. 






384 PARADISE LOST. book x. 



CHAPTER II. 

Sin and Death make a bridge over Chaos, and travel from Hell 
to Earth: Satan arrives at Pandcemonium, and in full assem^ 
bly relates his success against Man. 

Mean while, before Adam and Eve had sinned, 
and had sentence passed on them on earth, Sin and 
Death sat within the gates of hell on either side, op- 
posite to each other; the gates since Satan passed 
through had stood wide open, belching outrageous 
flames into the Chaos, Sin having opened them; who 
now thus began to say to Death: 

O son! why do we sit here idly viewing each other, 
while our great author Satan thrives in other worlds, 
and provides a happier seat for us his clear offspring? 
it cannot be otherwise, than that success attends him: 
had he met with misfortune, he had returned before 
this time, furiously driven by the ministers of ven- 
geance; since no place can be so fit for his punishment 
or their revenge, as this is. Methinks I feel new 
strength rise within me, wings growing, and large do- 
minion given me beyond this deep hell whatever it be 
that draws me on, or whether it be sympathy, or the 
force of some natural power to unite things of like na- 
ture at the greatest distance, by secret attraction and 
conveyance. Thou who art my shadow and insepara- 
ble from me, must go along with me, for there is no 
power that can separate Death from Sin. But, lest per- 
chance the difficulty of passing back, keeps him from 
returning over this gulf, through which there is no pas- 
sage, let us try (a difficult piece of work! yet not im- 
proper for thee and me, nor ill suited to our power) to 
make a path over the abyss from hell to that new world, 



chap. ii. PARADISE LOST. 335 

where Satan has now got footing; a monument of high 
merit to all the infernal host, making their passage 
easy, backward and forward from hence, or for them 
to quit hell once for all, which of these shall happen to 
be their lot: nor can I miss the way, finding myself 
so strongly drawn by instinct, and this new felt attrac- 
tion. 

To whom the meagre shadow, Death, soon gave an- 
swer: Go, whither fate and strong inclination lead thee 
on; I shall not lag behind, nor miss the way, thou be- 
ing be guide: I draw such a scent of mortality, prey 
innumerable! and taste the savour of Death from all 
things that lie there: nor shall I be wanting to the 
work thou art taking in hand, but give all the assist- 
ance that lies in my power. And so saying, he snuffed 
with great delight the smell of the mortal change upon 
earth: as when a flock of ravenous birds of prey come 
flying against the day of battle, where armies lie en- 
camped, though from the distance of many a league, 
drawn by the scent of living carcasses, designed for 
death the next day in bloody war; so the grim king of 
terrors snuffed and turned up his nostrils into the taint- 
ed air, smelling his prey from afar. Then both he and 
Sin flew different ways from out the gates of hell, into 
the waste, wild, and confused Chaos; damp and dark; 
and with power (for their power was great) hovering 
upon the waters, drove, crowded together (as if it were 
tossed up and down in a raging sea) all that they met 
with, solid or slimy, driving it in shoals on each side, 
towards the mouth of hell: as when two polar winds, 
blowing adverse upon the Cronian (i) sea, drive toge- 

(i) Cronian, of Cronos or Cronus; Lai. Gr. L e. time. A name 
of Saturn, the god of time and all cold tilings. Here, the Fro- 
zen Northern ocean, under the influence of the planet Saturn: 
which is a cold planet, according to the astrologers: being far 
from us. 



336 PARADISE LOST. book x. 

ther mountains of ice, that stop the imagined way be- 
yond Petsora, (k) eastward to the rich coast of Cathay 
(I). Death smote what they had gathered together with 
his petrifying mace, and fixed as firm as Delos now is 
fixed, which was said once to have floated; the rest the 
rigour of his look bound: they fastened all with slime, 
broad as the gate, and deep as the bottom of hell, and 
built an immense and high arched pile over the foam- 
ing deep; a bridge of prodigious length, joining to the 
wall of this world, now defenceless and forfeited to 
Death: from hence making a broad, easy, inoffensive 
passage clown to hell: so (if great things may be com- 
pared to small) Xerxes, (m) to bring under subjection 

(k) Fetsora or Petzorka; Russ. A province in the north of 
Muscovy, under the Arctic circle upon the Icy sea, on the west 
side of the river Oby; so called from the capital city, which 
standeth in a lake of the same name; there is a river so called, 
which falleth into that ocean, at the mouth of the Waygats. It 
borders upon Siberia. The Russians call a vast range of moun- 
tains near to it Zimno Lipias, i. e. the belt or girdle of the world, 
which they imagine to be the extremes of it. 

(Z) Cathay or Catae. A province of Tartary, having the Fro- 
zen ocean on the north, and China on the south. It is called 
Cava Kitaia and Jlva, by the Tartars, i. e. black China; because 
the inhabitants were sun-burnt; whereas those of China, at least 
in the northern provinces, are white. It consisted of the six 
northern provinces of China, so called from the ancient Cati of 
Tartary, who conquered China, and established Cathay for the 
seat of their empire; then Pekin or Cambalu became the royal 
city, and the whole empire of China went under that denomina- 
tion by the Tartars, who conquered it; though it had been the 
most ancient empire, and lasted the longest of any upon earth, 
A.D. 1278. These places and names were first made known to 
the Europeans from the Saracens, who began a long and bloody 
war with the Tartars, A.D. 1616. ended in the conquest of 
China and the destruction of the family of the Taimingee, A. 
D. 1644. As father Paul of Venice relates, who was in that war. 

(m) Xerxes; Pers. i. e. the grand warrior. The fourth king 
of Persia, and the first of that name. He was second son of Da- 



ohap. ii. PARADISE LOST. 337 

the liberty of Greece, come from the royal palace of 
Susa (n) to the sea> and making a bridge over the Hel- 
lespont, (0) joined Europe (p) to Asia; (q) of whom it 

rius, i. e. the Avenger; (Ahasuerus is his scriptural name) i. e. 
one that defeats the schemes of another man, and nephew of Cy- 
rus the Great (i. e. the sun.) Xerxes reduced Egypt, and in 
the fifth year of his reign, set out from Susa with the most nu- 
merous and formidable army that ever the world saw before or 
since, to invade Greece: which amounted to five millions of 
souls and above. Herodot. I. 7. c. 187. A. M. 3470. But was 
shamefully defeated, and hardly escaped with his life, in a little 
cock-boat. A just chastisement for his insolence. He is called 
Ahasuerus, Esther i. 

(w) Susa; Heb. i. e. a lily: because many lilies grow there- 
about. So Jericho is called the city of Palm trees, Deut. xxxiv. 
3. And Florence, in Italy, from abundance of flowers there. It 
is called Shushan; and there Ahasuerus held his court, Esther 
i. 2. And hence the whole country was called Susiana. The 
chief city of that province of Persia between Tygris and Per- 
sia, and five days journey from the Euphrates towards the fron- 
tiers of Chaldea. It was built or repaired by Darius Hystas- 
pis, the father of Xerxes, as Pliny reports; but Strabo ascribes 
it to Tython the father of Memnon, about A.M. 2730, there- 
fore, some call it Memnonia. It was the seat of the Persian 
emperors, during the summer season, for many ages. There 
Daniel the prophet was buried; and Josephus says that this fa- 
mous palace there was fresh and beautiful in his days. Alex- 
ander the Great took it and found about seven millions in gold, 
and 9,000,000 pound sterling in silver, besides other immense 
treasures there. Now Souster, Thevenot. There Alexander 
the Great married Statyra, and made a feast for 9000 guests, 
and gave to each of them a golden cup. 

(0) Hellespont; Lat. Gr. i. e. the sea of Helle, daughter of 
Athamas king of Thebes in Greece; which flying with her bro- 
ther Phryxus, from the indignation of her mother-in-law, pe- 
rished there. It is a narrow sea between the Propontis or 
White sea, and the head of the Archipelago, not above ten or 
twelve leagues in length, at the mouth it is a large league and 
a half broad, and at the narrowest about seven furlongs over. 
It is the entrance into Constantinople from the Archipelago, 
43 



338 PARADISE LOST. book x. 

was said that he scourged the waves, because they 
broke down his bridge. 

and divides Europe from Asia. Some call it the Straits of 
Gallipoli, from a city of that name upon the west side of it; and 
by the Turks, the Dardanels, from Dardane, an ancient city, 
near it, in Asia Minor. It is defended by two new castles, 
which Mahomet IV. 1639, and not from the old castles of Ces- 
tos and Abydos, as some have thought. See Mons. Tournefort. 
Over this sea Xerxes laid a bridge between Cestos and Abydos, 
by which he carried his immense army in seven days and nights, 
into Europe. 

(/;) Europe; Phoen, i. e. a white face, of a, fair countenance: 
because the people of it are whiter and fairer, than those of 
Asia and Africa. One of the four grand quarters of the world; 
though it be least of all, yet it is most considerable now for all 
manner of arts, sciences, arms, laws and learning in the world, 
&c. It is about 3300 miles in length; and 2300 in breadth. 
Strabo and other geographers resemble it to the shape of a dra- 
gon, whereof the head to Spain, the neck to France, the main 
body to Germany. Europe contains two empires, and about 
thirty different kingdoms. It is parted from Africa by the Me- 
diterranean sea on the south, and from Asia by the Archipela- 
go, Hellespont, Propontis, the Bosphorus, Euxine sea, the 
Mpeotis, and the great river Volga on the north east. 

(q) Asia; Phoen. i. e. the middle: because it (especially Lesser 
Asia) lies in the middle of Europe, Asia, and Africa. The 
third quarter of the world, larger than the other two, and very 
famous for being the original seat of man's creation, fall and 
redemption; for the first and most renowned transactions of 
mankind, recorded in sacred writ, and all ancient histories. It 
is surrounded with sea on the north, east and southland parted 
from Europe, as is said above, on the west. Asia extends from 
the north to the south, about 4400 miles; and from east to west, 
7500 miles. Anciently it was divided into the Greater and 
Lesser Asia; afterwards into five large empires, viz. I. That 
of the Czar of Muscovy. II. Of the great Cham of Tartary. 
III. Of the great Mogul. IV. Of the Sophy of Persia. V. Of 
the Sultan of the Turks. To those may be added the empire 
of China, which was not known to the ancients; but as large 
as any of those empires. 



chap. ii. PARADISE LOST. 339 

Now death and sin had brought the work (by won- 
derous art, superior to any we know) to the outside of 
this round world; it was a ridge of pendent rock, 
which they had drawn over the Chaos, following the 
tract of Satan, to the self-same place where he first 
lighted and landed: they made all fast with pins and 
chains of adamant: too fast and too durable they made 
it! and now in little space the confines of heaven and 
of this world met; and on the left hand hell interposed 
with a long tract between; three several ways in sight 
led to these three places. And now they had disco- 
vered the opening that led to the earth, where Satan had 
entered; and tending first their way to Paradise, they 
beheld him in the likeness of a bright angel, between 
the centaur (r) and the scorpion, steering upwards 
among innumerable constellations, and the sun rising 
in aries. He came in a disguise, but sin and death 
soon discerned their parent through it. He, after he 
had seduced Eve, slunk without being taken notice of 
into the neighbouring wood; and changing his shape, 
to observe the sequel, saw his deceitful act seconded 
by Eve (though she knew nothing of the mischief she 
was about) upon her husband: he saw their shame, 
and that they had sought vain coverings to hide it; 
but when he saw the Son of God coming from heaven 
to judge them, terrified at that, he lied; not hoping by 

(r) Centaur; Lat. from the Gr. i. e. pricking a bull. A fa- 
bulous monster, half man half horse. This fable rose from a 
people of Thessaly, who first broke horses to war, and riding 
upon horseback, drove their cattle before them. Other men 
seeing them at a distance, thought they were but one creature: 
and so the poor Americans thought of the Spaniards, when they 
first invaded them upon horses. Here, an astron. T. a south- 
ern constellation, consisting of 37 stars, which is called Sagit- 
tarius, Lat. i. e. an archer or bowman. It is so called because 
of its vehement cold when the rays of it cast forth the piercing 
winds in November. 



340 PARADISE LOST. book x. 

that means to escape, but only to slum the present pun- 
ishment; fearing (knowing himself to be guilty) what 
God's wrath might inflict: that past, he returned by 
night, and listening, where the unhappy couple sat in 
their sad discourse and various complaints thence ga- 
thered the knowledge of his own doom; which under- 
standing not instantly to be inflicted, but in future time, 
he now returned to hell full of joy, and fraught with 
good tidings; and at the brink of Chaos, near the foot 
of this new wonderful bridge, he met (not hoping nor ex- 
pecting) his dear offspring, who were come to meet him; 
there was great joy at their interview, and it increased 
at sight of that stupendous passage, which they had 
made. He stood long in admiration, until Sin, his 
fair enchanting daughter, thus broke the silence: 

O father! these are thy great deeds, these are thy 
trophies! which thou viewest as if they were not thy 
own; thou art their author and first architect; for 
I no sooner divined in my heart (which by a secret 
harmony still moves with thine, joined in a sweet con- 
nection) that thou hadst prospered on earth, which thy 
looks now also bear witness to, but straight I felt 
(though the distance of worlds was betwixt us) that I 
must follow thee, with this thy son; for fate, and the 
necessary consequence of things, will for ever unite us 
three: hell could no longer hold us, nor this obscure, 
unpassable gulf detain us from following thy illustri- 
ous track. Thou hast achieved our liberty at last, 
though until now we have been confined within the 
gates of hell: thou hast given us power thus far to for- 
tify the dark abyss, and to lay over it this wonderous 
and portentious bridge. This world is now all thine; 
thy virtue has w r on what thy hands did not make: thy 
wisdom has gained, with odds, what war had lost, and 
fully avenged us for the loss that we sustained in hea- 
ven: here thou shalt reign monarch; there thou didst 



chap. ii. PARADISE LOST. 341 

not: there let him still bear sway, the conquerer, as 
battle hath adjudged him; retiring from this new world, 
which is now alienated from him by his own sentence: 
and let him henceforth only divide with thee the mo- 
narchy of all things, parted by the bounds of heaven, 
which is his dominion, from this orbicular world, which 
is now thine; or let him try another battle with thee, 
now grown more dangerous to his throne. 

To whom the prince of darkness made this glad an- 
swer: Fair daughter! and thou who art at the same 
time my son and grandchild! you have given high 
proof that ye are of the race of Satan (for I glory in 
the name, which declares me the antagonist of the al- 
mighty King of heaven) and merit great praise from me, 
and all the infernal empire; that so near heaven have, 
with this glorious work and triumphal act, met me, tri- 
umphal from my glorious act, and have made this 
world and hell one realm (and made it ours) one con- 
tinent of easy thoroughfare. Therefore while I with 
ease ascend through darkness, over the road which ye 
have made, to my associate powers, to acquaint them with 
what hath happened, and to rejoice with them; do you 
too, this way, among these numerous orbs (which are 
all yours) desend right down to Paradise: dwell there, 
and reign in happiness, and thence exercise dominion 
on the earth and in the air, but chiefly upon Man, who 
has been declared lord of all: make him first your 
slave and prisoner, and lastly kill him. I send ye my 
substitutes, and create ye my plenipotentiaries on earth, 
having matchless and full power issuing from me: all 
my hold of this new kingdom depends entirely upon 
your joint strength; it lying, through my craft and ma- 
nagement, now exposed to Death through Sin. If your 
united power does not prevail, the affairs of hell need 
fear no detriment; therefore go, and be strong in evil. 



3*3 PARADISE LOST. book x. 

Saying this, he dismissed them, and they with speed 
held their course though the thickest of the constella- 
tions, every where spreading their bane: the blasted 
stars looked pale, and planets under evil influence 
then suffered real eclipse. Satan went the other 
way, down the causeway to the gate of hell: on either 
side, Chaos (over whose realm Sin and Death had 
built the bridge) beat with rebounding surge against 
its foundation, which it could not remove. Satan pass- 
ed through the gate, that was wide open and unguard- 
ed, and found the place deserted; for those who were 
appointed and used to sit there, had (as has been said) 
left their charge, and ilown to the upper world: the 
rest were all retired farther within, about the walls of 
Pandsemonium, the city and proud seat of Lucifer: 
(Satan having been called so by allusion, being com- 
pared to that bright star) there the legions kept their 
watch, while the chiefs sat in council, solicitous what 
accident might intercept the return of their sent empe- 
ror; for so when he departed he gave command, and 
they observed it: as when the Tartar retires form his 
foe the Russian (s) by Astracan, (t) over the snowy 

(s) Russian, of Russia; Heb. i. e. the head: or from Rossi or 
Ru ssi, which in their tongue signifies a collected people, con- 
sisting of divers nations joined together under one head; or from 
Russ. the son of Japhet, the reputed founder of the monarchy. 
They settled about mount Taurus, and afterwards in the north 
parts of Asia and Europe; where they erected 12 different 
dukedoms, which at last submitted to one supreme, called Tzar, 
or Czaar, Sclav, i. e. a prince or sovereign: and Muscovites, 
since the Tzars established their residence at Moscow, A.D. 
1300. Muscovy is 4 times as large as all Germany, but. not 
half so populous; because of the vast woods, deserts and unin- 
habitable parts of it. 

it) Astracan; Rus. from the Pers. Haistherk hoim, i. e. eight 
pillars; being so founded at first. A large and wealthy city in 
one of the islands of the river Volga, at 13 leagues from the 
mouth of it. The Russians call that Island Dolgi Ostrof, i. e. 



ghap. ii. PARADISE LOST. 343 

plains; or the Sophy (u) of Persia, retiring from the 
Turks, leaves all waste beyond the realm Aladule, (x) 
in his retreat to Tauris (y) or Casbin: (z) so these, the 

the Long-isle: because it is very long. John Bazilovitz (Rus. 
from the Gr. i. e. the king, and wits, i. e. illustrious) took it 
from the Tartars, A.D. 1554. It stands on a rising ground, 47 
degrees northern latitude, encompassed with a double wall, is 
well fortified. It gives name to a large kingdom of Tartary, 
upon the Caspian sea; is one of the best cities belonging to 
Russia, and grows more considerable, by the great trade with 
the Persians, Tartars, Collmaks, Georgians and Russians. 

{ii) Sophi, or Sophy; Pers. from the Arab. Toph, i. e. wool: 
because a king of Persia took that name, from a woollen turban, 
or vest which he wore. Pure and sincere: because he professed 
to be of the race of Haly. This is a title of the emperors of Per- 
sia from Ishmael Sophi the son of Guine Sophi, chief of the 
7th race of their kings, who from a shepherd (by his courage 
and good fortune) was raised to that throne, about A.D. 1370. 

(cc) Jlladule: Pers. is the Greater Armenia with a part of 
Cappadoeia; and is so called by the Turks from Aladules, the 
last king of it, whom Selymus I. slew, A.D. 1516. and subject- 
ed it to their empire ever since. It was called Turcomania, in 
the year 844. When a great flood of bloody Tartars or Turks 
passed over the Caspian mountains and settled there. 

(y) Tauris, and Tebris; Pers. Some call it Ecbatana: be- 
cause it was founded out of the ruins of that ancient city (as 
old as Babylon, and called Alhmetha, Esd. vi. 2. founded by 
Arphaxad, A.D. 786.) Tebris belonged to the Turks till Shah 
Abas king of Persia retook it, Jl.D. 1603. It is one of the rich- 
est cities of Persia, and of the greatest trade in Asia. There 
is a Medresha or academy in it; a vast number of Armenian 
Christians, and their patriarch's seat. 

(z) Casbin, Caswin, or Karwin: a large and beautiful city of 
Persia, and formerly of Parthia; and situate in a delightful 
plain, 6 miles in circumference; in the province of Ayrach, be- 
tween the Caspian sea and Ispahan. Some take Casbin for 
Tauris the Ecbatana of Media, but it is 65 German miles from 
Tauris. Here the Persian monarchs resided after the loss of 
Tauris, till Shah Abbas removed to Ispahan; since then it has 
declined, but there they are all inaugurated still. The inhabi- 
tants are Muhammedans. except some Christians and Jews, that 



344 PARADISE LOST, book x. 

host lately banished from heaven, left the outermost parts 
of hell deserted many a dark league, being reduced in 
careful watch round their metropolis, and now in hourly 
expectation of their great adventurer, from the search 
of foreign worlds. He passed through the midst of 
them unmarked, appearing only as an inferior angel of 
war of the lowest order; and from the door of the Pan- 
demonium invisibly ascended his high throne, which 
was placed in regal lustre at the upper end, under 
a canopy of state most richly woven. He sat down 
a while, and looked round about him, he himself keep- 
ing unseen: at last, as from a cloud appeared his shin- 
ing head and shape, bright like a star: (or brighter; 
being clad with that permissive glory or false glitter, 
that was left him since his fall.) The throng of infer- 
nal spirits, all amazed at such a sudden blaze, turned 
their eyes that way, beholding him they were wishing 
to see; and their acclamations were loud and many. 
The great peers that were sitting in council, rushed 
out from their dark divan (a) and with like congratu- 
lating joy approached him; who, making a motion with 
his hand, made silence, and with these words gained 
attention: 

Thrones, dominations, princedoms, virtues, powers! 
for such I declare ye now and call ye, not only in 
right, but in actual possession; seeing I am returned suc- 
cessful beyond hope, to lead ye forth out of this infernal, 
abominable pit, accursed place, the house of woe, the 
dungeon of our great tyrant! now ye shall possess as 
lords a spacious world, little inferior to our native 
heaven, achieved by me with hardship and great peril. 
It would be long to tell what I have done; what I have 

are considerable merchants. There is also a Madresha or aca- 
demy for Persian learning. 

"(a) Divan: the most solemn council among the Turks is 
called so. 



ghap. h. PARADISE LOST. 345 

suffered; with what pain I made may voyage through 
the vast, unbounded, and deep abyss of horrible con- 
fusion; over which, now, a broad way is paved by Sin 
and Death, to facilitate your glorious march: but I la- 
boured through my untrodden path, plunged in the 
midst of darkness and wild Chaos, who fiercely op- 
posed my strange journey with clamorous uproar, de- 
claring that fate was against me: afterwards how I 
found the new created world, which fame in heaven 
had long foretold; a wonderful fabric! of absolute per- 
fection! and therein found Man, placed in a Paradise, 
made happy by our banishment. Him I have seduced 
by fraud to disobey his Creator; and (what may in- 
crease your wonder the more) only with an apple. He, 
at that offended (it is a subject well worth laughing 
at) hath given up both his beloved Man, and all his 
world, a prey to Sin and Death, and consequently to 
us, without our hazard, labour, or contention; to range 
in, and to dwell in, and to rule over Man, just as he 
should have reigned over all other things. It is true, 
he has judged me too, or rather not me, but the brute 
serpent, in whose shape I deceived Man; that part that 
belongs to me is enmity, which he says he will put be- 
tween me and mankind; I am to bruise his heel, and 
his seed (but he does not say when) shall bruise my 
head. Who would not purchase a whole world with 
a bruise or pain much more grievous? and now you 
have heard the account of my performance; what re- 
mains speak ye, who are all gods, but that we mount 
up, and instantly enter into full bliss? 

Having said this, lie stood a while, expecting that 
high applause and an universal shout would fill his 
ear; when on the contrary, he hears on all sides, from 
tongues without number, a dismal and universal hiss, 
the sound of public contempt! he wondered at it, but 
he had not leisure to do so long; n©w wondering much 

4* 



346 PARADISE LOST. book x 

more at himself: lie felt his visage drawn sharp; his 
arms clang to his ribs; his legs twining round eaeh 
other, until no longer supported by them, he fell down 
with reluctance, a monstrous serpent prone upon his 
belly; his reluctance was vain, for now a greater power 
ruled him, and punished him in the shape he sinned, 
according to the sentence that was past on him. He 
would have spoke, but instead of that returned hiss for 
hiss, with forked tongue to forked tongue; for now they 
were all alike transformed to serpents, as having been 
all necessary to the bold evil which he had committed: 
the din of hissing was very dreadful all through the 
hall, that was now swarming thick with complete mon- 
sters, head and tail; scoi'pion, and asp, (b) Cerastes (c) 
the horned serpent, dumb Ellops, (d) and dreadful 
Bipsas, (e) and all kinds of serpents: such prodigious 

(b) Jlsp; Lat. from the Gr. poison; or not extending; because 
they lay round commonly. A very venomous serpent, whose 
poison kills speedily. It is small like a land snake, hut of a 
broader back, having red and inflamed eyes, hard and dry scales. 
Some are above a foot and a half long; others three, four and 
six foot. The shortest kill soonest. They abound in Africa, 
kill instantly and without any remedy. See Acts xxviii. 6. 
And even in Britain their bite is mortal, but not so speedy; but 
in Egypt they are tame and abide in the houses. 

(c) Cerastes; Gr. i. e. horned, q. the horned serpent: for it 
hath four pair of horns, others say only two. 

(r?) Ellops; Gr. i. e. without a voice. A dumb and silent ser- 
pent, that gives no notice of his approach, as others do by his^r 
ing, rattles, <$'c. So no creature can avoid it. 

(e) Bipsas; Lat. Gr. i. e. thirst. And also Causan; Gr. i. e. 
burning. A serpent with a great neck and black back, less 
than a viper, but more venomous and quicker in killing: it is 
in Lybia, Syria, and other hot regions. The poison of it is 
vastly hot, dries up the blood, and infects every creature which 
it stings, with a most vehement heat and thirst, unquenchable 
and incurable, whereof they die quickly. 



chap. ii. PARADISE LOST. , 347 

numbers as never were seen in Ophiusa, (/) or other 
place more infested with them: but still Satan amidst 
them was the largest of all, being now grown a dragon, 
larger than that the sun was feigned to have engender- 
ed in the Pythian vale on slime, and was called huge 
Python; and he seemed still to retain his power above 
the rest. They all followed him rushing forth to the 
open field, where the rest of that revolted rout that were 
fallen from heaven stood in their station, drawn up in 
array, exalted in their expectation, when they should 
see their glorious chief come forth in triumph. They 
saw (but it was a sight quite different) a crowd of ugly 
serpents: horror at once fell on them, and horrid sym- 
pathy: for what they saw they felt themselves now 
changing; down fell their arms, spear and shield, and 
they as fast; and renewed the dire hiss, and catched 
the dire form by contagion; alike in punishment, as in 
their crime. Thus the applause they meant was turned 
to an exploding hiss, and their designed triumph to 
shame, cast upon themselves from their own mouths. 

Hard by there stood a grove, which sprung up at the 
time of their transformation (such was the will of him 
who reigns in heaven!) to aggravate their patience, 
which was laden with fruit like that which grew in 
Paradise, and was the bait the tempter had used to 
catch Eve: on that strange prospect they earnestly 
iixed their eyes, imagining, that for one forbidden tree 
there was now such a multitude, to work them further 
misery or shame: yet, parched with burning thirst and 
fierce hunger, could not abstain, though they were sent 

(/) Ophiusa; Gr. and Colubrarict, Lat. i. e. the serpentine 
island; because it is much infested with serpents, of which there 
are three most remarkable, viz. two in the Mediterranean sea, 
and one in the Propontis, near Constantinople, which the inha- 
bitants quitted for fear of these vermin. Some say Cyprus was 
one of the two. 






348 PARADISE LOST. book x . 

only to delude them; but on they rolled in heaps, and 
climbing up the trees, sat thicker than those, which are 
feigned to dress the heads of the Furies: they greedily 
plucked the fruit, fair to the sight, like that which grew 
near the sea of Sodom; (g) though this more delusive, 
did not deceive the touch but the taste: they fondly 
thinking to allay their appetite with a good gust, in- 
stead of fruit chewed only bitter ashes, which the of- 
fended taste rejected with dislike; often they tried, 
hunger and thirst constraining them, and were as of- 
ten tormented with the hateful disrelish, writhing their 
jaws about that were filled with soot and cinders. 
Thus they often fell into the same illusion; not as 
Man, whom they triumphed over, who fell but once; 
thus were they plagued and worn with famine, and 
with long and continual hissing, until by permission 
thy resumed their lost shape: yet some say that every 
year for a certain number of days, they are enjoined 
to undergo this humbling, to dash their pride and joy 
for seducing Man. However, they dispersed some 
tradition among the heathen, of the purchase they had 
got; and fabled how the serpent, whom they called 
Ophion, (h) with Eurynome, (i) (who encroached on 

(g) The sea of Sodom. Josephus says, the apples of Sodom 
were very fair and pleasant to the sight; but when touched 
they flew into smoke and ashes, 

(/i) Ophion; Lat. from the Gr. i. e, a serpent. One of the 
companions of Cadmus, who sprung,* out of the teeth of that ser- 
pent, which Cadmus slew. Others make him to have been one 
of the Titanes, the husband of Eurynome, possessed of the go- 
vernment of all things; the ancientest of all the gods who 
reigned on Olympus, long before Saturn and Jupiter dethroned 
him and his wife. 

(?) Eurynome; Lat. from the Gr. i. e. ruling wide, encroach- 
ing. The daughter of Oceanus, and wife of Ophion, which en- 
croached on her husband, and ruined her posterity. Under this 
fable the heathens couched Adam and Eve, and their expulsion 
out of Paradise. 



chap. in. PARADISE LOST. 349 

her husband, and ruined his posterity) had first the 
rule of high Olympus; that they were driven thence 
by Saturn and Ops, (k) before the Dictean (I) Jove was 
yet born. 



CHAPTER m. 

The proceedings of Sin and Death; God foretells the final vic- 
tory over them, and the renewing of all things; but for the 
present commands several alterations to be made in the ele- 
ments. 

Mean while the hellish offspring of Satan arriv- 
ed too soon in Paradise; Sin, who was there poten- 
tially before the fall (there being a possibility of it, and 
actually when the transgression was) but now appears 
in person to dwell and take possession: behind her 
came Death, (m) following close, step for step, not 

(k) Ops; Lat. from the Gr. i. e. riches. The daughter of 
heaven and earth, the sister and wife of Saturn. The Greeks 
called her also Rhea, i. e, flowing with wealth. Ops is the 
earth, out of which all riches are produced. Or Eve, the sister 
and wife of Adam, the Saturn of the heathens; for she came 
out of the same womb, i. e. the earth, and was expelled Para- 
dise. 

(1) Dictean, of Dictea, Lat. Gr. i. e. a place of nets and fish- 
ermen. A city and mountain in Crete, between Gnossus and 
Samois, now called Cassiti; where Jupiter was nursed. It was 
so called from Dictymna, one of Diana's companions in hunt- 
ing, which first found out fishing nets, and was worshipped 
there; and from the fishermen who lived there. 

(m) Death is so described Rev. vi. 8. ' And I looked, and 

* behold a pale horse; and his name that sat on him was Death; 

* and hell followed with him; and power was given unto them, 
6 over the fourth part of the earth, to kill with sword, and with 
£ hunger, and with death, and with the beasts of the earth. ? 



350 PARADISE LOST. book x, 

yet mounted on his pale horse: to whom Sin began 
to speak thus: 

All-conquering Death! and the second that sprung from 
Satan! what dost thou now think of our empire? though 
obtained with difficulty, is not it far better than still to 
have sat watching at hell's dark threshold? to be nei- 
ther named nor feared, and thou to remain half starved? 

To whom the monster, that Sin brought into the 
world, soon answered: Alike to me, who pine with 
eternal hunger, is hell, or Paradise, or heaven; that 
place is best for me, where I may meet with most prey; 
which here, though plentiful, seems all too little to stuff 
this maw, this vast corps, which has been so long kept 
hungry, and has room for all. 

To whom Sin, his incestuous mother, thus replied: 
Do thou therefore feed first upon these herbs, and fruits, 
and flowers; next upon every beast, and fish, and fowl; 
(and sure these are no coarse morsels!) and then devour 
unspared whatever the scythe of Time mows down; un- 
til I, residing in Man, quite through the race, infect all 
his thoughts, looks, words, and actions, and season 
hini for thy last and sweetest prey. 

Having said this, they each betook them their seve- 
ral way, both bent to destroy, or render things of all 
kinds perishable or liable to mortality; and sooner or 
later ripen them for destruction; which the Almighty 
seeing from his bright throne among the saints, thus to 
those bright orders uttered his voice: 

See! with what fury these dogs of hell advance, 
to destroy and ruin yonder world; which I created so 
fair and good, and had still kept in that state, had not 
Man's folly let in these wasteful furies, who impute 
folly to me: so does Satan, the prince of hell, and 
his adherents, that I suffer them to enter with so 
much ease, and possess so heavenly a place; and con- 
niving, seem to gratify my scornful enemies, that laugh 



chap. in. PARADISE LOST. 35i 

as if I (transported with some fit of passion) had quitted 
at random, and yielded up all to their mismanagement; 
and do not know that I called and drew them thither, 
only as my hell hounds, to lick up the dregs and filthy 
which the pollution of Man's sin had shed with a taint 
upon what was pure; until crammed and gorged, and 
ready to burst at one stroke of thy victorious arm, O 
my Son, in whom I am well pleased ! Sin and Death 
at last being flung to the mouth of hell, shall stop its 
month for ever and ever, and seal up its ravenous jaws. 
Then heaven and earth being renewed shall be puri- 
fied to such a degree of sanctity, as shall be incapa- 
ble of impurity; until then the curse pronounced on Sin 
and Death shall lead them on. 

He ended, and the heavenly audience sung aloud 
hallelujah, loud as the sound of seas, by reason of the 
multitude that sung. " Just are thy ways, and thy de- 
crees are righteous on all thy works; who can diminish 
thee? next to the Son, the destined restorer of man- 
kind, be glory; by whom the new heaven and earth shall 
be renewed out of the old, or else descend down from 
heaven." Such was their song, while he, the great 
Creator, calling forth his mighty angels by name, gave 
them their several charges, as suited best with the pre- 
sent state of things. The sun had first his command to 
move so, and so to shine, as might affect the earth with 
heat and cold scarcely tolerable, to call decripit win- 
ter from the north, and from the south to bring solsti- 
tial (n) summer's heat. To the pale moon they pre- 

(«) Solstitial, of the Solstice; Lat. i. e. the standing of the 
sun. An astron. term. The summer solstice falls on the 11th 
of Jane, and the winter on the 11th of December; to which two 
points of the tropies when the sun comes, there is no sensible 
increase or decrease of the day and night for a little time; it 
seems to be at a stand. Here the first is meant. 



85£ PARADISE LOST. book x, 

scribed her office: to the other five planets, (o) their 
motions in their several orbs and aspects, in sextile, (p) 
square, (q) and trine, (r) and opposite, (s) of hurtful 
and unbenign influence; and the angels likewise by God's 
command, taught the fixed stars when to shower their 
malignancy; which of them falling or rising with the 
sun should prove tempestuous. They set the corners 
to the winds, and taught them when with blustering to 
confound the sea, land, and air; and the thunders where 
to roil with terror through the dark clouds. Some say 
God bid his angels turn the poles of the earth more 
than twenty degrees from the sun's road; and that they 
with labour pushed the earth, fixed on her centre, out 
of her first place. Some say, the sun was bid to turn from 

(o) Planets; Gr. i. e. wandering. Here, moving in their se- 
veral orbs. Here several terms of astrology and astronomy oc- 
cur, in a continued digression; according to astrologers, the 
planets make several angles or aspects, in their motions through 
the 12 signs. 

(j>) Sextile; Lat. an astron. term, i. e. of the sixth. An aspect, 
when two planets are distant 60 degrees, or one sixth part of 
the Zodiac. 

(q) Square; Lat. an astrol. term, i. e.four cornered. An as- 
pect between two planets, which are distant 90 degrees from one 
another, i. e. one fourth part of the Zodiac. It is counted an 
unfortunate conjunction hy the astrologers. 

(r) Trine; Lat. an astrol. term, i. e. a third. An aspeet, 
when two planets are distant from one another, 120 degrees, 
which is a third part of the Zodiac. 

(s) Opposite; Lat. an astrol. term, i. e. over against, facing. 
An aspect, when two planets are distant 180 degrees, diametri- 
cally opposite, or directly facing one another, which is one 
half part of the Zodiac This astrologers call a bad aspect; 
which forebodes evil to those that are born under it. Two hea- 
venly bodies are said to be in conjunction with one another, 
when they are in the same semi-circle of latitude, and to be in op- 
position, as they are in opposite semi-circles of latitude*, the cir- 
cles being divided into semi-circles of latitude, by the axis of 
the great Ecliptic. 



4hap. in. PARADISE LOST. 353 

the equinoctial road, a like distant breadth to Taurus,, 
with the seven stars that are called sisters (which are 
the Pleiades) and gemini, (t) up to the tropic of can- 
cer; (u) thence down amain by leo, (a?) virgo, (y) and 
libra, (z) as low as Capricorn, (a) to bring in change 
of seasons to each climate; else the spring had smiled 

(t) Gemini, twins; Sax. two children horn at one birth. Here, 
Castor and Pollux, sons of Tindaurus and Leda, king of Spar- 
ta; born there, and at the same time. Castor and Pollux, i. e. 
adorned and shining, were the 11th king of it after their father, 
and reigned cotemporary. They are feigned to be the sign 
Gemini, by fabulous antiquity, and were much in veneration 
among the heathens. See Acts xxviii. 11. They are stars of 
the second magnitude, which form the two heads of Gemini, the 
third of the twelve signs of the Zodiac. 

(u) Cancer; because the sun moves back the same way as 
tlte erab doth; or because it consists of nine stars in the shape 
of a crab; the fourth of the twelve signs, the sun enters into 
this sign on the 10th of June. Here, the tropic of Cancer, or 
the northern tropic. 

(r) Leo; Lat. from the Gr. the lion. Here, an astron, term. 
The 5th of the 12 signs, into which the sun enters in the 21st 
of July. This constellation hath 27 stars about it. 

(y) Virgo, Virgin^ Lat. i. e. strong; a chaste maid, a maid- 
en in her bloom and strength. Here an astron. term. The 6th 
of the twelve signs. It consists of 26 stars; the sun enters into 
it in the 23d of August yearly. This is Astrsea the goddess of 
justice, who left the earth because of the wickedness of men af- 
ter the fail, and flew up to heaven; where she weighs, considers, 
and examines all actions of men and things, as the poets feigned. 

{%) Libra; i. e. a balance, or pair of scales. Here an astron. 
term. The 7th of the 12 signs, into which the sun enters in 
the 13th of September. It is the first of the 6th southern signs 
of the Zodiac. 

(a) Capricorn; Lat. i. e. a homed goat; because then the 
sun at this point climbs upward again in its annual course, like 
that climbing creature the goat. An astron. term. The 10th 
of the 12 signs. It consists of 2t stars; the sun enters into it 
in the 11th of December, asd makes the winter solstice. It is 
the southern tropic. 

45 




854 PARADISE LOST. book x. 

perpetually upon the earth, with continual blooming 
flowers, equal in days and nights, except to those be- 
yond the polar circles; to them day had shone without 
night, while the low sun, to make amends for his being 
at so great a distance, had always gone round the ho- 
rizon in their sight, and not known east or west; which 
had forbid the snow from cold Estotiland, (b) and south 
as far beneath Magellan (c). 

At the taste of the forbidden fruit (as it is said he 
did from the bloody banquet of Thyestes) (d) the sun 

(b) Estotiland; Swed. i. e. another land. It was called so by 
some fishermen of Friezland, who first discovered it, long be- 
fore Columbus. It was afterwards discovered by Nicholas and 
Andrew Zeni, Venetians; by the Portuguese, and called Terra 
de Labrador, i. e. the land of the labourer; because it required 
much pains to cultivate it; by the Spaniards, Terra de Corte- 
real; because Gaspar Cortereal discovered it; and now New 
Britain by the French and Britains. This is the most northern 
country of America, extending towards the east and Hudson's 
Bay; extremely cold, mountainous, overrun with forests and 
wild beasts. The inhabitants go naked, notwithstanding the 
extreme cold, and are idolaters for the most part. Sebastian 
Cabot, a Venetian, Jt.D. 1479, by commission from Hen. VII. 
of England, furnished two ships with 300 men in England, at 
his own expense; and discovered all the north coast, from 28 
to 56 degrees of northern latitude, 20 years before any other 
Europeans. 

(c) Magellan; Portug. A vast country in South America, 
extending towards the south pole, not yet well discovered nor 
inhabited by the Europeans. This, with the Straits, which 
part it from the continent of South America, took their names 
from Ferdinand Magellan or Maglianes, a Portuguese, who 
discovered them A.D. 1519 and 1520, by the order and assist- 
ance of the Emperor Charles V. But he was poisoned in the 
island de los Ladrones, i. e. the island of robbers; or died in the 
island of Maran, A.D. 1520. 

(d ) Thyestes; Gr. i. e. a murderer. The son of Pelops, and 
brother of Atreus. Thyestes committed adultery with his bro- 
ther's wife; to revenge it Atreus slew the son that was born of 



cttap. in. PARADISE LOST. 355 

changed his first course; else how had the world, that 
would have been inhabited all over as well as Eden 
(though they had been without Sin) have more than 
now avoided pinching cold and scorching heat? these 
changes in heaven produced (though slowly) like 
change upon sea and land, star-blast, vapour, mist, 
and hot corrupt and pestilent exhalation! now the 
winds from the north Boreas, (e) Csecias, (/) Arges- 
tes, (g) and Thrascias, (h) bursting their brazen dun- 
geon from Norumbeque, (i) and the shore of Samoed, 
(k) armed with ice, snow, hail, and storms, rend up 
the woods, and turn up the seas: Notus, (I) and Afer, 

her, and served him up to his own brother at a feast. At this 
horrid wickedness, it is said, the sun turned back his course for 
a time, lest he should be polluted. Such an abhorrence the blind 
heathens had of those heinous crimes. 

(e) Boreas; Lat. from the Gr. i. e. a roaring violent sound. 
The north wind so called from the sound and force of it. 

(/) Ccecias; Lat. Gr. from Caycus, i. e. dr airing evil. It 
is a river of Mysia in Lesser Asia near the Hellespont, from 
which this wind blows upon Greece; and gathers clouds toge- 
ther by a strong attractive power. The north-west wind. 

(g) Jlrgestes; i. e. white as silver; because it clears the sky, 
making it clear as silver. The north-east wind. 

(Ji) Thrascias; Lat. Gr. i. e. blowing from Thrace, now Ro- 
mania in Europe, upon Greece, from the north. The north wind. 

(i) Norumbeque; from the French, Americ. A large coun- 
try of North America, having Nova Scotia on the south-west, 
New England on the north-west, and the ocean on the south; 
from the capital city of the same name, 

(Jc) Samoed, or Samoiede; Russ. i. e. Cannibals or Men-eaters. 
A province in the north-east of Muscovy, upon the Icy Sea, on 
both sides of the river Ob; and joining to Siberia. The people 
are very rude and savage, idolaters to this day. Stephen Bur- 
roughs, an Englishman, first discovered this country, Ji.D, 
1536. 

(I) Notus; Lat. from the Gr. i. e. moist and wet Hence 
Ovid calls it watery. The south wind. 



356 PARADISE LOST. *ook x. 

(m) black with thunder clouds from Serraliona, (n) 
turn them up with adverse blast from the south: across 
these forth rush with equal fierceness, the Levant (0) 
and Ponent (p) winds, Eurus, (q) and Zephyr; with 
their side winds Sirocco, (r) and Libecchio, (s) Thus 
outrage began from things without life: but Discord 
(the daughter of Sin) first introduced Death among 
the irrational creatures, through fierce antipathy: beast 
now began to fight with beast, fowl with fowl, and fish 
with fish, all leaving to graze upon the grass, devoured 
one another; nor did they stand much in awe of Man, 
but fled from him, or passing by him, glared on him with 
a grim countenance. 

(m) Afer; Gr. i. e. blowing from Africa, The south-west 
wind, which lies south from Greece. 

(n) Serraliona^ in the edit. Siri'a Liona^ Span. i. e. the lion 
mountains; vulgo Cajf di Sierra Liona; so called from a chain 
of mountains, that reach to the Atlantic ocean, which beats 
upon these rocks, and makes a noise like the roaring of a lion. 
Anciently Teoon Ochema, Gr. i. e. the chariots of the gods. It 
is the most western point of Africa, on the frontiers of Nigritia 
and Guinea, and within a few leagues of Cape Verd. 

(o) Levant; Fr. from the Lat. i. e. rising. The east, or 
eastern countries, especially those on the Mediterranean sea, 
where the sun riseth. The east wind. 

(p) Ponent; Lat. Fr. milt. i. e. laying down; because there 
the sun sets down to our appearance. Fr. Vent dn Ponant, i. e. 
the west wind, i. e. the winds rising and setting; the east and 
west winds. 

(q) Eurus; Lat. Gr. i. e. belonging to the east. The east 
wind. 

(r) Sirocco; Ital. Span. Lat. Japyx. i. e. blowing from Sy~ 
via. The south-east wind; because Syria lies south-east from 
Italy and Spain. 

(s) Libecchio; Span. Ital. i. e. blowing from Lybia. The 
south-west windj because Lybia lies south-west from Italy and 
Spain. 



chap. iv. PARADISE LOST. 357 



CHAPTER IV. 

Mam bewails his fallen condition; Eve endeavours to appease 
him 9 but does not succeed. He exhorts her to seek peace by 
repentance. 

These were the growing miseries from without, 
which Adam in part already saw, though hid in the 
gloomiest shade, and abandoned to sorrow: but within 
himself he felt worse misery, and his mind was tossed 
and thrown up and down in a troubled sea of disor- 
dered passions; which he endeavoured thus to disbur- 
then with sad complaint: 

How miserable am I become, who was once so hap- 
py! is this the end of this new glorious world, and of 
me, so lately the glory of that glory, who from being 
blessed am now become accursed? hide me from the 
face of God, whom to behold was once the height of 

my happiness! Yet if the misery would end here, 

it were well; I deserved it, and would bear my own 
deservings: but this will not serve! all that I eat or 
drink, or shall beget, is propagating and prolonging 
the curse. O voice heard once with so much delight, 
' Increase and multiply;' now it is Death to hear it! 
for what can I increase and multiply, except it be 
curses on my own head? who will there be of all suc- 
ceeding ages, but feeling the evil brought upon him by 
me, will curse my head? he will cry, may our impure 
ancestor fare ill! for this we may thank Adam! but 
these his thanks shall be the execration! so, besides 
my own curse that abides upon me, all from me shall 
rebound fiercely back on me, and tend to me as their 
natural centre; there being light, as having reached that 
centre, and lost their gravity, which in other places 



858 



PARADISE LOST. 



BOOK X, 



they had! O fleeting joys of Paradise, dearly bought 
with lasting misery! did I request thee, O thou who 
madest me, to make me a Man, when I was nothing 
but clay? did I solicit thee to take me forth out of dark- 
ness? or to place me here in this delicious garden? as 
my will did not concur to my being, it were but right 
and just to reduce me to what I was before, that is to 
dust; being desirous to resign, and give back again all 
I have received; seeing I have been unable to perform 
thy too hard terms, by which I was to hold the good 
that I had not sought. To the loss of that good (which 
is sufficient penalty!) why hast thou added the sense of 
endless woes? in this thy justice does not seem to ap- 
pear. — Yet, to say the truth, I contest thus when it is 
too late; these terms, whatever they might me, should 
then have been refused, when they were proposed. I 
may be answered thus; thou didst accept them, wilt 
thou enjoy the good, and then cavil at the conditions? 
and though God did make thee without thy leave, what 
if thy son prove disobedient, and being reproved, should 
answer and object to thee, wherefore didst thou beget 
me? I sought it not, nor desired it of thee! wouldest 
thou admit of that proud excuse of his contempt of 
thee? and yet it was not thy election, but natural ne- 
cessity that begot him. God made thee of choice, his 
own, and of his own to serve him; thy reward was of 
his grace; then thy punishment, for certain, is justly at 
his will. Then be it so! for I submit; his doom is 
righteous, that I am dust and to dust I shall return 
again. O welcome hour, come whenever it will! why 
does his hand delay to execute, what his decree fixed 
upon this day? why do I live over it? why am I mock- 
ed with Death, and yet preserved and prolonged to 
deathless pain? how gladly would I meet the mortality 
that I was sentenced to, and become insensible earth! 
how gladly would I lay me down, as in my mother's 



8HAP. iv. PARADISE LOST. 359 

lap! there I should rest, there I should sleep securely: 
his dreadful voice would no more thunder in my ears: 
I should not be tormented with fears of worse to me 
and my offspring, which now torment me with cruel 
expectation! — Yet there is one doubt pursues me still, 
lest I cannot wholly die; lest that pure breath of life, 
the spirit of Man, which God breathed into him, can- 
not perish together with this corporal clay: then who 
knows but in the grave, or some other dismal place, I 
shall die a living death? O horrid thought, if it be true! 
yet why should it be so? it was but breath of life that 
sinned; and what dies but what had life and sin? the 
body, properly speaking, hath neither. Then all of me 
shall die: let this quiet the doubt, since human under- 
standing knows no further. For though the Lord of 
all be indeed infinite, is his wrath so too? suppose it! 
Man is not so, but declared and doomed mortal. Then 
how can he exercise wrath without end upon Man, 
whom death must end? can he make deathless Death? 
that were to make a strange contradiction, which is 
held impossible to God himself; as it would be an ar- 
gument of weakness, not of power. Will he, for an- 
ger's sake, draw out finite to infinite in punished Man, 
to satisfy his anger, which never will be satisfied? that 
were to extend his sentence beyond dust, and the law 
of nature; by which all causes else act, according to 
the matter they have to work upon, and not to the ex- 
tent of their own power. But say that Death be not 
as I supposed, one stroke, bereaving the senses, but 
endless misery from this day forward; which I feel be- 
gun within me and without me, and so it is to last per- 
petually. — Ah me! that fear comes thundering back 
dreadfully on my defenceless head: Death as well as 
I, is found eternal, and both incorporated. Nor I sin- 
gle on my part; in me all posterity stands cursed! Ah 
my sons! this is a fair patrimony that I must leave you! 



360 PARADISE LOST. book x. 

O! that I were able to waste it all myself, and leave 
you none! being so disinherited, how would you then 
bless me, who am now your curse! Ah! why should all 
mankind be thus, without guilt, condemned for one 
Man's fault? mankind! and guiltless, can that be? for 
what can proceed from me but what is all corrupt, de- 
praved both mind and will; not to do only, but to will 
the same as me? how then can they stand acquitted in 
the sight of Grod? after all disputes, I am forced to ab- 
solve him: all my vain reasonings and evasions, though 
through many mazes., lead still but to my own convic- 
tion: first and last all the blame justly lights on me, 
and me only, as the source and spring of all corrup- 
tion; all the blame! so might the wrath fall on me! fond 
wish! couldest thou support that burthen, heavier to 
bear than the earth; much heavier than all the world, 
though divided with that bad Woman? thus what thou 
desirest and what thou fearest, equally destroys all 
hope of refuge, and concludes thee miserable, beyond 
all past and future example; and like to nothing but 
Satan, both in crime and doom. O conscience! into 
what an abyss of fears and horrors hast thou driven 
me? out of which I can find no way, but go plunging 
deeper and deeper! 

Thus Adam made loud lamentation in the stillness 
of the night; which was not wholesome, cool, and mild, 
as it was before Man fell; but accompanied with black 
air, with dreadful gloom and dampness; which repre- 
sented every thing to his evil conscience with double 
terror. He lay outstretched upon the cold ground; and 
often cursed his creation: Death he accused as often, 
tardy of execution, since it was threatened to be on the 
day that he offended. Why (said he) does not Death 
come, with one thrice welcomed stroke to end me? shall 
truth fail to keep her word? why does not divine jus- 
tice hasten to be just? but Death does not come at all, 



chap. iv. PARADISE LOST. 36i 

divine justice not the quicker for prayers or cries! O 
woods! O fountains, hills, valleys, and bowers! lately 
I taught your shades to answer with echoes not like 

these, and to resound a song far different! When 

sad Eve, desolate where she sat, beheld Adam thus 
afflicted; approaching near, she tried with soft words 
to allay the fierceness of his passion: but Adam, with 
an angry look, thus checked and repelled her: 

Get out of my sight, thou serpent! That name is 

fittest for thee, who are leagued with him; thyself as 
false as he, and as hateful! there is nothing wanting, 
but that thy shape and serpentine colour, like his may 
show thy inward fraud; to warn all creatures hence- 
forth to avoid thee, lest that too heavenly form, held to 
sight to hide hellish falsehood, ensnare them! — Had it 
not been for thee, I had persisted happy; had not thy 
pride and wandering vanity, when it was least safe, re- 
jected my forewarning, and disdained to be thought not 
fit to be trusted alone; longing to be seen, though it 
were by the devil himself; vainly thinking to over- 
reach him: but meeting with the serpent, art fooled and 
beguiled; thou by him, and I by thee, to trust thee 
from my side; imagining thee to be wise, constant, con- 
siderate, and proof against all assaults; and did not 
understand that all was but a show, rather than solid 
virtue; all nothing but a rib, crooked by nature, best 
thrown out, as found supernumerary to my just num- 
ber! why did God, the wise Creator! that peo- 
pled the highest heaven with masculine spirits, at last 
create this novelty upon earth, this fair defect of nature? 
and not fill the world at once with men, as heaven with 
angels, without any female? or find out some other way 
to generate mankind? then this mischief had not hap- 
pened, and more that shall happen; numberless dis- 
turbances upon earth, through the snares of women, 
and a straight conjunction with this sex! for either a 

46 



362 PARADISE LOST. book x. 

a man shall never find out a M mate, but such as some 
mistake or misfortune brings him; or her, he wishes 
for most, and loves best, through her perverseness shall 
seldom gain, but shall see her gained by a far worse 
than himself; or if she love him, withheld by parents; 
or shall meet her, who would be his happiest choice^ 
already bound in wedlock to another, perhaps his ene- 
my, one that is his hate or shame; which shall cause 
infinite calamities to human life, and confound domes- 
tic peace! 

He said no more, and turned from her. But 

Eve, not repulsed so, with tears that fiowed continu- ' 
ally, and dishevelled hair, fell humbly at his feet; and 
embracing them, entreated him to be at peace, and pro- 
ceeded thus in her complaint: 

Adam! do not abandon me thus; witness heaven^ 
what sincere love and reverence in my heart I bear 
thee, and have offended not knowingly; but being un- 
happily deceived! with humblest supplication I beg to 

be forgiven, and clasp thy knees. Do not bereave 

me of that, on which I live, thy gentle looks, thy kind 
assistance and counsel in this uttermost distress, my 
only strength and support! forsaken of thee, whither 

shall I betake me? Where shall I subsist? while 

we yet live (which perhaps may be scarce one short 
hour) let there be peace between his two! both joining 
in one enmity (as joined in injuries) against a foe, ex- 
pressly assigned us by fate, that cruel serpent! Do 

not exercise thy hatred on me for this misery which 
is befallen us; upon me, who am already lost! me, 
more miserable than thyself! we both have sinned! 
but thou only against God; I, both against God and 
thee; and will return to the place of judgment, there 
to importune heaven with my cries, that all the sen- 
tence removed from thy head may light upon me, wlio 






shap. iv. PARADISE LOST. 363 

am the sole cause of all this woe to thee: yes! it is I 
alone, that am the just objeet of his wrath! 

She ended weeping, and kept immoveable in her 
humble posture; until having obtained peace for her 
fault, acknowledged, and repented, she wrought com- 
miseration in Adam: his heart soon relented towards 
her, to see her, who so lately was his own delight, and 
dear to him as life, now in such distress, submissive 
at his feet! to see so fair a creature seeking his recon- 
cilement whom she had displeased, and suing for his 
counsel and assistance! disarmed at once, he lost all 
his anger, and thus with peaceful words he soon raised 
her up from the ground: 

Unwary Eve! and too desirous (now as thou wert 
before) of that thou knowest not, who desirest, that 
the punishment of both our crimes may all light upon 
thyself! Alas! bear thy own part first; thou art ill able 
to sustain his full wrath, of which as yet thou feelest 
but the least part, and seest how ill thou canst bear 
even my displeasure. If prayers could alter the de- 
crees of heaven, I would speed to the place of judg- 
ment before thee; and be heard louder requesting that 
upon my head all might be visited, and thy frailty and 
infirmer sex be forgiven; which was committed to my 
care, and through my permission exposed to hazard. 

But rise! Let us contend no more, nor blame each 

other; we are blamed enough elsewhere! but let us 
strive in offices of love, how we may make each others 
burthen lighter in our share of misery; since Death 
threatened us this day (if I judge right) will prove a 
slow paced and not a sudden evil; a long day's dying, 
in augmentation of our pain; and be entailed (Gh mis- 
ery to think on!) upon our posterity. 

To whom Eve, taking fresh courage, replied thus: 
Adam! I know by sad experiment, how little weight 
my words ought to have with thee, having been found 



364 PARADISE LOST. hook x. 

so erroneous; thence (as is the just event of error) found 
so unfortunate: nevertheless, being restored by thee to 
a place of new acceptance (vile as I am!) I am hope- 
ful yet to regain thy love, which is the only content- 
ment of my heart, either living or dying; so that I will 
not hide from thee what thoughts are risen in my un- 
quiet breast, tending either to end our extreme sorrow, 
or give some relief to it; which means, though sharp 
and sad, yet are better to be chose, and more tolerable 
than our present evils. If the care of those who are to 
descend from us, be what perplexes us most, as they 
must be born to certain misery, and be at last devoured 
by Death (and it is a miserable thing, to be the cause 
of misery to others, and those our own begotten; out 
of our own loins, to bring into this cursed world a 
miserable race, that, after bearing wretched life, must 
be at last food for so foul a monster!) it lies yet in thy 
power, before conception, to prevent the unblest race, 
to prevent being what is yet unbegot. Thou art yet 
childless, childless remain still: so Death shall be de- 
ceived of his glut, and be forced to satisfy his ravenous 
maw with us two only. But if thou judge it difficult 
and too hard, conversing together, looking upon and 
loving one another, to abstain from sweet nuptial em- 
braces, the rites due to love; and without hope to lan- 
guish with desire, before the object that languishes 
with like desire; (which would be a misery and tor- 
ment as great as any that we dread) then, to free both 
ourselves and seed at once from what we fear for both, 
let us make short work,— -let us seek Death; — or if 
he is not to be found, let us ourselves with our own 
hands supply his office. Why do we stand any longer 
shivering under fears, that show no end but Death; 
and yet have the power of many ways to die? why not 
choosing the shortest prevent the destruction of our 
posterity, by destroying ourselves? 



ghap. iv. PARADISE LOST. 365 

She ended here; or else vehement despair broke 
off the rest she had to say; her thoughts had enter- 
tained so much of death, as made her cheek quite pale: 
but Adam, nothing swayed by such counsel, had rais- 
ed his labouring and more attentive mind to better 
hopes; and thus he replied to Eve: 

Eve! thy contempt of life and pleasure, seems to 
argue something in thee more sublime and excellent, 
than that which thy mind contemns. But, therefore 
seeking self-destruction refutes that excellence, thought 
to be in thee; and implies not thy contempt of life, but 
anguish and regret for the loss of it, and pleasure over 
loved. Or if thou covetest death, as the utmost end 
of all misery, so thinking to evade the penalty pro- 
nounced; doubt not but God hath more wisely armed 
his vengeance, than to be fore-stalled and disappointed 
so: I am much more afraid, lest death, if we should so 
snatch it, will not exempt us from the pain, which we 
are by doom to pay. Rather such acts of contumacy 
will provoke God to make death live in us! then let us 
seek some safer resolution, which methinks I have in 
my view; with heed calling to mind that part of our 
sentence, that " thy seed shall bruise the serpent's 
head;" a poor amends! unless (which as I conjecture) 
our great enemy Satan be meant; who, in the serpent, 
hath contrived this deceit against us. To crush his 
head would be revenge indeed! which will be lost, if 
we were to bring death upon ourselves; or resolve, as 
thou hast proposed, to live childless: so our foe shall 
escape the punishment ordained him, and we, instead 
of that, shall double ours upon our own heads. Then 
do not let any more be mentioned of violence upon 
ourselves, or wilful barrenness, that cuts us off from 
hope, and only savours of rancour, pride, impatience, 
and despite, and reluctance against God, and his just 
yoke laid upon our necks. Let us remember, with 



366 PARADISE LOST. book x. 

what mild and gracious temper he both heard and 
judged us; without anger, and without reproaches. 
We expected immediate dissolution, which we ima- 
gined was meant by Death that day: when, lo! to thee 
were only foretold pains in bearing and bringing forth 
children; which will be soon recompensed with joy, the 
fruit of thy womb. The curse not so directly pro- 
nounced on me, glanced on the ground; I must earn 
my bread with labour: what harm is that? idleness had 
been worse; my labour will sustain me: and lest cold 
or heat should do us injury, he has, without being 
sought too, with timely care provided us clothes (un- 
worthy as we are) with his own hands; pitying, even 
while he judged us. How much more then, if we pray 
to him, will his ear be open, and his heart inclined to 
pity us? and teach us further, how to shun the incle- 
mency of the seasons, rain, ice, hail, and snow; which 
now the the sky begins to shew us in this mountain; 
while the winds blow moist and keen; shattering the 
the leaves of these fair spreading trees: which bids us 
seek some better covering, to cherish our numbed 
limbs; before the sun leave the night cold, how we 
may foment his beams, gathered together by some 
warm or combustible matter; or by striking two hard 
bodies together, move the heated air into fire, as lately 
the clouds, justling or forced with winds, in their rude 
shock flashed the slant lightning, tlie flame of which 
driven down, kindles the gummy part of fir or pine, 
and sends out from a distance a comfortable heat, 
which might supply the want of that of the sun. He 
will instruct us, if we pray to him, and beseech grace 
of him, to use such fire, and what else may be a cure 
to these evils, which our own misdeeds have brought 
on us: so as we need not fear to pass this life commo- 
diously, sustained by him with many comforts; until 
such time as we end in dust, our final rest and native 



ghap. iv. PARADISE LOST. 36? 

Lome! what can we do better, than repair to the placa 
where he judged us? fall reverently prostrate before 
him, and there humbly confess our faults, and beg par- 
don; watering the ground with our tears, and filling 
the air with our sighs, sent from contrite hearts, in sign 
of unfeigned sorrow and meek humiliation? he will 
undoubtedly relent, and turn away from his displea- 
sure; in whose serene look, when he seemed most an- 
gry and most severe, what else shone but favour, grace, 
and mercy? 

So spoke our first father, in true penitence: nor did 
Eve feel less remorse: they forthwith repaired to the 
place where God judged them, fell reverently prostrate 
before him; and there humbly confessed their faults, 
and begged pardon; watering the ground with their 
tears, and filling the air with their sighs, sent from 
contrite hearts, in sign of unfeigned sorrow and meek 
humiliation. 



THE ELEVENTH BOOK 



OF 



PARADISE LOST. 



THE ARGUMENT. 

The Son of God presents to his Father the prayers of our first 
parents, now repenting, and intercedes for them: God accepts 
them, but declares that they must no longer abide in Paradise: 
sends Michael, with a band of cherubim, to dispossess them; 
but first to reveal to Adam future things: Michael's coming 
down. 



47 



CHAPTER I. 

The Son of God presents to his Father the prayers of Adam and 
Eve. Michael is sent to put them out of Paradise, and reveal 
future things to Adam. 

Thus prostrate in the lowest state of humility, 
they remained penitent and praying, for, even before 
that, grace descending from the mercy-seat (a) above, 
had softened the stony ness of their hearts, and in the 
room made new flesh to grow; so that they breathed 
unutterable sighs and groans; which were inspired 
with the spirit of prayer, and could sooner find the way 
to heaven than the loudest oratory: yet were they not 
meant supplicants, nor did their petition seem less im- 
portant, than when the ancient pair, according to the 

(a) Mercy*seat. It was a covering of pure solid gold, made 
exactly to fit the dimensions of the ark, to which the two che- 
rubims of gold also were fixed, and spread their wings over it; 
placed in the tabernacle and in Solomon's temple under the two 
cherubims. It was two cubits and a half in length, and a cubit 
and a half in breadth, Exod. xxv. 17, 18. 21. < And thou shalt 

* make a mercy-seat of pure gold: two cubits and a half shall 

* be the length thereof, and a cubit and a half the breadth there- 
' of. And thou shalt make two cherubims of gold: of beaten 
< work shalt thou make them in the two ends of the merey-seat. 
6 And thou shalt put the mercy-seat above upon the ark, and in 
4 the ark thou shalt put the testimony that I shall give thee.' 
It was called Propitiatory or Covering Mercy'Seat. Therefore 
God is said to sit between the cherubims. Thither the pious 
Jews did always turn their faces, in whatever part of the world 
they were when they prayed, 1 Kings via. 48. Psal. xcix. 1. 
Dan. vi. Jon. ii. 5. Heb, iv. 16, 



373 PARADISE LOST. book xi. 

fables of old, Deucalion (b) and chaste Pyrrha, (c) 
stood before the shrine of Themis, (d) to restore the 
race of mankind, destroyed by the deluge. Their 
prayers ascended up to heaven, without obstruction, 
and there found easy entrance; then clad with incense, 
came in sight before the Father's throne, where the 
golden altar smoked, close by their great intercessor; 
and the Son gladly presenting them, thus began to in- 
tercede: 

Behold, Father! what are the first fruits, which 
on earth are sprung up in Man, from thy grace im- 
planted in hini! they are these sighs and prayers, 
which I thy priest bring before thee, mixed with in- 
cense in this golden censor: these are fruits of more 
pleasing savour, produced from thy seed, sown with 
contrition in his heart, than those which all the trees 
in Paradise could have produced, manured by his 
hand before he was fallen from innocence. Now, 
therefore, incline thine ear to his supplication; hear 

(fi) Deucalion; Lat. Gr. i. e. calling upon God, An ancient 
king of Thessaiy the son of Prometheus, cotemporary with Ce- 
crops kiug of Athens, about A.M. 34-37, in whose reign a great 
inundation happened in Greece. He with his wife only were 
saved in a little boat upon mount Parnassus, until the waters 
abated. 

(c) Pyrrha; Lat. Gr. i. e.jire: because of her singular piety, 
zeal for the gods, and chastity. She was the wife of Deucalion. 
These names were very suitable to the character given to Noah 
and his wife. — Deucalion, they say, was the first that erected a 
temple to the worship of the gods; so Noah built the first altar* 

we read of in the world, Gen. viii. 20, 21. And Berosus 

calls Pyrrha Tytea and Vesta. Heb. i. e. earth born, 

(d) Tliemis; Lat. Gr. i. e. just or right: because she taught 
men to petition the gods for those things that were right and 
fit; or Heb. from Tham or Thummim, i. e. perfect, upright. A 
goddess, that had an oracle upon mount Parnassus; thither those 
two addressed themselves for counsel, how the lost race of man- 
kind might be restored. 



chap. i. PARADISE LOST. 373 

his sighs, though his tongue be mute! he knows not 
with what words to pray, let me interpret for him, who 
am his advocate and propitiation; impute all his deeds 
good or evil to me; my merit shall make the good per- 
fect, and for the evil my death shall pay. Accept of 
me; and in me, from these prayers and sighs, receive 
motive to grant peace to mankind: let him live recon- 
ciled before thee, though he live in sorrow (at least the 
number of his days) until death (which being his doom 
I plead not to reverse, but to mitigate) shall yield him 
to a better life; where all my redeemed may dwell 
with me in bliss and joy; and as I am one with thee, 
so they may be made one with me. 

To whom the Father graciously replied: My ac- 
cepted Son! all that thou hast requested for Man, ob- 
tain, for all thy request was my decree. But the law 
which I gave to nature, forbids him to dwell any lon- 
ger in that Paradise: those pure and immortal ele- 
ments, that know no gross nor foul discordant mixture, 
eject him, as he is now tainted; and purge him off, as 
a gross distemper, to fouler air and mortal food, such 
as may best fit him for the dissolution wrought by sin, 
that first distempered and corrupted all things. I, 
when I first created him, endowed him with two fair 
gifts, happiness and immortality; happiness once lost, 
immortality served only to make misery eternal, until 
such time as I provided Death; so Death becomes his 
final remedy, and resigns him up to a second life, when 
heaven and earth shall be renew ed, after a life tried 
in sharp tribulation, and refined by faith and faithful 
works; when he shall be waked in the renovation of 
the just. But let us call together all the blest through 
the wide bounds of heaven: I will not hide my judg- 
ments from them, and how 7 I proceed with mankind, as 
they saw lately how 7 I did with the offending angels; 



374 PARADISE LOST. book xr. 

and though they stood firm in their state before, yet 
afterwards they were still more confirmed. 

The Father concluded thus; and the Son gave high 
signal to the bright minister that kept watch: he blew 
his trumpet, that which was since heard in Oreb, (e) 
when God descended, and perhaps the same that will 
sound at the day of judgment. The sound of the trum- 
pet, which the angel sounded, was heard through all 
heaven: the angelical sons of light, hasted from their 
blissful bowers of shady amaranths, or from fountains 
or springs by the waters of life, wherever they sat in 
fellowship of joy, resorting according as their high sum- 
mons called them; where they took their seats; until 
the Almighty from his supreme throne, thus pro- 
nounced his sovereign will: 

O sons of heaven! Man is become like unto one of 
us to know both good and evil, since he has tasted of 
the forbidden fruit: but let him boast his knowledge, 
which is of good lost and evil got; happier had it been 
for him, had he thought it sufficient to have known 
good by itself, and not have known evil at all. Now 
he repents, is sorrowful, and prays with a contrite 
heart; all these are my motions in him; and longer 
than they move, supposing him left to himself, I know 
his heart how variable and vain it is. Therefore, lest 
now his bolder hand reach also of the tree of life, and 
eat of that, and so live for ever (at least dream to live 
for ever) I decree to remove him, and send him out of 
the garden to till the ground, whence he was taken; 
which is a soil much fitter for him. 

(e) Orel; i. e. when God descended with the sound of a trum- 
pet, Exod. xix. 6. < And it came to pass on the third day in the 
6 morning, that there were thunders and lightnings; and a thick 
< cloud upon the mount, and the voice of the trumpet exceeding 
4 loud; so that all the people that were in the camp trembled.' 



chap. i. PARADISE LOST. 375 

Michael! do thou take this command of mine in 
charge: take to thee from among the cherubim thy 
choice of flaming warriors; lest the fiend raise some 
new trouble, either in the behalf of Man, or else to in- 
vade vacant possession. Make haste, and without re- 
morse drive out the sinful pair from the Paradise of 
God; drive out the unholy from that holy ground, and 
denounce to them and their posterity perpetual banish- 
ment from thence. Yet, lest they faint at the sad sen- 
tence, urged too rigorously, hide all terror; for I be- 
hold them softened, and bewailing their transgression 
with tears. If they patiently submit and obey with 
resignation, do not dismiss them disconsolate; but mix 
with my commands speech of my covenant renewed in 
the seed of the Woman: so send them forth, though 
in sorrow, yet in peace. And on the east side of the 
garden place a watch of cherubim, and the wide wav- 
ing flame of a sword; (where the entrance up from 
Eden is the easiest to Paradise) to deter all approach, 
and guard all passage to the tree of life; lest Paradise 
prove a receptacle for foul spirits, and all my trees 
should become their prey; with whose stolen fruit they 
might once more endeavour to delude Man. 

He ceased here, and the archangel prepared for 
swift descent, with him the bright company of watch- 
ful cherubim: each of them had four faces, like a dou^ 
ble Janus; (/) their bodies were all over spangled 

(/) Janus; Heb. i. e. wine. The first king of Italy, who 
first dressed the vine and drank wine: therefore his posterity 
were called Oenotrii, Gr. i. e. wine-bibbers. He was therefore 
deified and honoured with a famous temple at Rome, pictured 
with two faces; in memory of him money was coined with a 
Janus on one side, and a ship on the reverse; and the month of 
January was dedicated to him. This description of angels is 
taken from Ezekiel x. 12. 14. < And their whole body, and their 
6 backs, and their hands, and their wings, and the wheels were 
* full of eyes round about, even the wheels that they four had, 




37$ - PARADISE LOST. book xk 

with eyes, more in number than those feigned of Ar- 
gus, (g) and more wakeful than to sleep, charmed with 
the Arcadian (h) pipe of Mercury, or to be lulled with 
the touch of his sleepy rod. Mean while the day broke, 
and fresh dew fell upon the earth, when Adam and 
our first mother Eve had now ended their prayers, and 
found new strength added from above; new hope to 
spring out of despair, and joy that was yet mixed with 
fear; so that he renewed his speech to Eve in these 
w T elcome words: 

Eve! faith may easily admit, that all the good which 
we enjoy descends from heaven; but that any thing 
from us should ascend up there ? so prevalent as to con- 
cern the mind of the high blest God, or to incline his 
will, may seem hard to believe; jet prayer will do this, 
nay one short sigh of human breath, borne up even to 

* And every one had four faces: the first face was the face of a 

* cherub, and the second face was the face of a man, and the 
< third the face of a lion, and the fourth the face of an eagle. 9 

(g) Argus; Lat. Gr. i. e. active and nimble. A shepherd, said 
to have had 100 eyes. Juno retained him in her service, to 
watch and relate the pranks of Jupiter. Jupiter was displeas- 
ed with such a spy, and set Mercury to work. He, with his 
pipe, lulled him fast asleep, and cut off his head; which Juno, 
in reward of his faithful service, turned into a stately peacock, 
whose tail is adorned with many golden circles; therefore this 
bird was dedicated to her. 

(Ji) Arcadian; belonging to Arcadia; from Areas, Gr. i. e. 
a bear. The son of Jupiter and Calisto (whom Jupiter turned 
into a bear) father of the Arcadians, and king of Arcadia. The 
Arcadians, ignorant of their true original, boasted that they 
were before the moon. It was called also Pelasgia and Thes- 
saly, and the people Pelasgi; who came out of Asia, settled in 
Greece, and fixed in Italy, after the Oenotrians. It is a coun- 
try in the middle of Peloponnesus, abounding with good pas- 
ture, flocks, and shepherds, who made pipes of the reeds and 
stalks of corn. The neople worshipped Pan, as their tutelar 
arod. 



chap. i. PARADISE LOST. 377 

the very seat of God. For, since I sought to appease 
the offended Deity by prayer: since I kneeled, and 
humbled all iny heart before him, niethought I saw him 
placable, and mildly bending his ear: persuasion grew 
in me, that I was heard with favour; peace returned 
home again to my breast, and that promise came to my 
memory, " That our seed should bruise our foe;" which 
not minded, as then I was in great dismay, yet now it 
assures me that the bitterness of Death is past, and we 
shall live. Whence I am bold to say, hail to thee! 
Eve, rightly so called, the mother of all mankind, the 
mother of all things living, since by thee Man is to 
live, and all things live for him! 

To whom Eve, with a humble and sorrowful coun- 
tenance, made answer: I am not worthy that such 
a title should belong to me, who am a transgress- 
or! who being ordained for a help, became a snare to 
thee: to me rather belongs reproach, suspicion, and all 
dispraise! but my judge w r as infinite in his mercy, that 
I, who first brought Death upon all, have the grace 
conferred on me to be the source of life: next thou art 
greatly favourable to me, who hast vouchsafed to give 
me this high title; I deserve a far other name! but the 
field calls us to labour now; labour, which is imposed 
on us with sweat of our brow; though we have not 
slept all night: for see the morning, taking no notice of 
our want of rest, begins her usual progress: let us go 
forth; I never henceforward offering to stray from thee, 
wherever our day's work may lie; though now enjoined 
us, that we labour until the day decline: what can be 
very toilsome in these pleasant walks, while we dwell 
here? let us live here contented, though we are in a 
fallen state! 

So Eve spoke, and so wished with great humility; 
but fate did not consent: first of all nature gave signs, 
marked on birds, beasts, and the elements; light eclips- 

48 



378 PARADISE LOST. book xi. 

ed suddenly, after a short appearance of the morning; 
the eagle flying from on high, drove two of the finest 
birds before him; the lion, then, the first hunter that 
ever was, pursued a hart and a hind, the goodliest of 
all the forest, down from a hill; and their flight was 
bent directly to the eastern gate of Paradise. Adam 
observed it, and fixing his eyes upon the chase, with 
some emotion spoke thus to Eve: 

O Ere! some further change for us is near at hand, 
which heaven shews by these mute signs in nature; the 
forerunners of his purpose, either to warn us, who may 
be too presuming and too secure of our discharge from 
penalty, because w T e have been released some days from 
Death: how long and what our life will be until then^ 
who knows? or is it more than this, perhaps to warn 
us that we are dust, and that we must return thither 
and be no more? why else this double object in our 
sight, of flight and pursuit in the air and over the 
ground, one way in the self-same hour? why is dark- 
ness in the east before noon? and Avhy is the morning 
light brighter in yon western cloud, that draws a shin- 
ing whiteness along before the sky, descending slowly? 
and bearing in it some of the blest from heaven. 




CHAPTER II. 

Michael denounces their departure; Eve's lamentation. Adam 
pleads, but submits. 

Adam did not mistake in his conjecture; for by 
this time the heavenly bands of angels Avere lighted 
down in Paradise from the serene sky, and took their 
stand upon a hill: a glorious appearance! had not 
doubts and carnal fear that day made the eyes of Adam 



uhap. ii. PARADISE LOST. 379 

dim: that was not more glorious, when the angels met 
Jacob in Mahanaim, (i) where he saw the field cover- 
ed with bright angels: nor was that more glorious, 
which appeared on the flaming mountain Dothan, (k) 
covered with chariots and horses of fire against Ben- 
hadad, the king of Syria; who, to surprise the prophet 
Elisha, (I) like an assassin had levied war unproelaim- 

(£) Mahanaim; Heb. i. e, two hosts or camps. So Jacob 
called the place, where he saw armies of holy angels protecting 
him from the fear of Esau, Gen. xxxii. 1, 2. A city was built 
there in memory of this glorious vision: in the tribe of Gad in 
the land of Gilead beyond Jordan for the priests, near Ramath, 
Josh. xxi. 38. It is 41 miles from Jerusalem to the east. Da- 
vid fled to it, as a sacred place of refuge, in his exile under Ab- 
salom's usurpation. Abinidab a priest was the governor of it, 
under king Solomon; and so it was always esteemed a sacred 
place from that occasion. 

(k) Dothan; Heb. i. e. commandment, A city about two miles 
from Sichein, six from Tiberias, twelve to the north of Sama- 
ria, forty-four miles from Jerusalem towards the north. A 
place of good pasture; for there Joseph found his brethren with 
their flocks, and was cast into a pit, Gen. xxxvii. 17. There 
Elisha the prophet lived, and struck the Syrian army with 
blindness; having a glorious guard of angels, with chariots and 
flaming fire about him, 2 Kings vi. 13, II, 15, 10, 17. " And 
" he said, Go, and spy where he is, that I may send and fetch 
" him; and it was told him, saying, Behold he is in Dothan. 
" Therefore sent he thither horses and chariots, and a great 
" host; and they came by night, and compassed the city about. 
66 And when the servant of the man of God was risen early and 
" gone forth, behold, an host compassed the city, both with 
" horses and chariots; and his servant said unto him, Alas, my 
" Master, how shall we do? And he answered, fear not; for 
" they that be with us, are more than they that be with them. 
" And Elisha prayed, and said, Lord, I pray thee open his eyes, 
" that he may see. And the Lord opened the eyes of the young 
" man, and he saw; and behold the mountain was full of horses, 
" and chariots of fire round about Elisha." And there Holo- 
fernes was slain by Judith. 

(J) Elisha the prophet, who discovered the private councils 
of the king of Syria to the king of Israel, 



38(!) PARADISE LOST, book XI 

ed. Michael, the princely archangel, left his powers 
there in their bright stand, to take possession of the 
garden; and he alone took his way, to find where Adam 
had sheltered himself; who perceiving him at a dis- 
tance, as he made his approach towards him, spoke to 
Eve in this manner: 

Eve! now is the time to expect to know some great 
matter, which perhaps will very soon determine what 
relates to us; or perhaps, for us to receive new laws 
to observe: for I discover: from yonder blazing cloud 
that covers the top of the hill, one of the host of hea- 
ven; and, by his port, none of the meanest; some great 
potentate, one of those who sit upon thrones above, 
such majesty appears about him as he comes along; 
yet not terrible that I should fear him; nor sociably 
mild as Raphael was, that I should venture to use 
much freedom with him; but lie seems solemn and sub- 
lime; whom not to offend I must meet with reverence, 
and do thou retire. 

He said thus; and the archangel soon drew near; 
not in his heavenly shape, but clad like a Man to meet 
with Man: he wore a military vest of purple, (in) of a 
brighter colour and richer dye, than ever was known 
}n Melibsea^ (w) or Tyre, (o) though that was worn by 

(m) Purple; Sax. Fr, Ital. Span. Lat. from the Gr. A cor 
lour between red and violet, taken from a sea fish, which is 
called Purpura, i. e. the colour of fire. The purple colour was 
first found out at Tyre, by an accident; for a hungry dog broke 
one of those shells upon the sea side, and eat the fish, which 
coloured his mouth and chops, to the admiration of all beholders. 
Hence the Tyrians became the most famous masters of that art, 
in all antiquity. Purple became as valuable as gold, and was 
Ihe distinguishing mark of emperors, kings, consuls, senators, 
dictators, and triumphers; so that a pound of it was sold at 
Rome for 1000 denarii, i. e. about Ml. 13s. -id. English money. 

(n) Melibcea; Lat. from the Gr. i. e. having the care of oxen. 
A city of Thessaly upon the sea shore, famous of old for the 



chap. ii. PARADISE LOST. 381 

kings and heroes of old, in time of truce; the rainbow (p) 
had given it its colours before it was wove: his helmet, 
that was unbuckled and shone like a star, shewed him 
just at that degree of manhood, where youth ended: 
his sword, the dread of Satan, hung by his side, fast- 
ened to a shining belt; and in his hand he bore a spear. 
Adam bowed down low; Michael, who was to keep 
up his royalty and state, did not bow in return, but 
thus declared the reason of his coming: 

art of dying the noblest purple, by the help of a shell-fish call- 
ed Purpura and Ostrum, which they caught in the sea there- 
about. 

(o) Tyre, now Sour, w T as a very ancient and rich seaport, and 
capital city of Phoenicia, built by Agenor, the father of Cad- 
mus, Isa. xxiii. 12. about A.M. 2499, or about the time of Gi- 
deon, a judge of Israel, sixty -five years before the destruction 
of Troy, and 240 before the building of Solomon's temple. It 
was a fortified city in the days of Joshua, chap. xix. 29. When 
Sidon was taken by the Philistines of Asealon, many of the 
citizens escaped in ships, and founded Tyre upon a rock in an 
island, half a mile from the land. But Josephu<? says later, in 
2733. A flourishing city in the days of king David and Solo- 
mon; famous of old for the vast trade, Ezek. xxvi. 27. which 
made her so proud and wicked, that the divine judgments were 
denounced against, and executed upon her, Ezek. xxviii. and 
for the Tyrian purple, made from the blood of a fish caught in 
that sea. This city resisted Nebuchadnezzar thirteen years; 
hut Alexander the Great took it in seven months, with incredi- 
ble pains and loss of men; and Antigonus after a siege of fifteen 
months, A.M. 3691, before Christ, 313. Now it is a miserable 
place, inhabited with a few poor fishermen without any houses. 

(/?) The rainbow. It is a natural meteor in the clouds, 
caused by the reflection of the rays of the sun upon them; there- 
fore it appears only in rainy weather. If there was any rain 
before the deluge, there must have been a rainbow: but after 
that, God made it a sign of his covenant with Noah, that the 
earth should never be drowned again, Gen. ix. 12, 13. EccL 
xliii. 11, 12. The purple, blue, and saffron colours appear most 
livelv in it. 



38& PARADISE LOST. book xt. 

Adam! there is no need to make any preamble to 
the command of heaven, let it be sufficient that thy 
prayers are heard, and death (which was due by sen- 
tence, at the time of thy transgression) not permitted 
to make the seizure for yet many days; which are 
given thee through grace, wherein thou mayest repent, 
and with many deeds well done, cover and blot out 
one bad act: it is possible God, upon thy repentance 
(being appeased) may not only defer but quite remit 
the mortal sentence, and redeem thee from the rapa- 
cious claim of Death. But he does not permit thee to 
dwell longer in this Paradise: I am come to remove 
thee, and send the out of the garden to till the ground, 
whence thou wast taken, which is a soil much fitter 
for thee. 

The archangel said no more; for Adam was struck 
to the very heart with such sorrow, as suspended all 
his senses; and Eve, who though unseen, had over- 
heard all, with loud lamentation soon discovered the 
place where she had concealed herself. 

O unexpected stroke, much worse than Death! Pa- 
radise! must I leave the thus? thus leave thee, dear 
native soil! these pleasant shapes and happy walks, 
worthy to be visited by gods? where I had hope to 
spend quiet, though sad, the time that heaven had grant- 
ed us, until the day come that must be mortal to us 
both! O flowers! that never will grow in any other 
climate; that were my early visitation in the morning, 
and niy last in the evening; which I bred up with ten- 
der hand, from the very first opening bud, and gave 
ye all names! who now shall raise ye up to the sun, 
or range in your several classes, and water ye from the 
living springs? and lastly, O nuptial bower! adorned 
by me with every tiling that was sweet, either to the 
smell or sight! how shall I part with thee and whither 
wander down into a lower world; wild, darksome, and 



qhap. n. PARADISE LOST. 383 

desolate, in comparison of this? how shall we breathe in 
other air less pure than this, or feed on grosser food, 
being accustomed to immortal fruits? 

Whom the angel thus mildly interrupted: Eve! do 
not lament, but resign with patience that, which with 
the greatest justice is taken from thee: nor thus over 
fondly set thy heart upon that, which is not thine. Thou 
dost not leave Paradise alone; thy husband goes along 
with thee, and thou art bound to follow him: wherever 
lie abides, do thou look the same upon that place, as 
if it were thy native soil. 

Adam, by this time recovering from the sudden cold 
damp which had seized him, and his scattered spirits 
being returned; thus, with great humility, addressed 
himself to Michael. 

Celestial being! whither among the thrones of hea- 
ven, or perhaps of them one of the highest names; for 
a prinee of princes may have such an appearance! thou 
hast gently delivered thy message, which might else, in 
telling, have wounded us, and in performing have end- 
ed us: but, bating the mildness with which that 
hast tempered them, thy tidings bring as much of 
sorrow, dejection, and despair, as the frailty of our 
nature can sustain: we must depart from this happy 
place, our sweet recess, and the only consolation left 
us; which is familiar to our eyes! and all other places 
appear inhospitable and desolate; not knowing us, nor 
being known to us: and if by incessant prayer I could 
hope to alter the will of him who ean do all tilings, I 
would not cease to weary him with my continual cries: 
but, prayers avail no more against his absolute decree, 
than breath does against the wind; blown stifling back 
upon him that breathes it forth: therefore I submit my- 
self entirely to his great command! what most inflicts 
me is, that when I depart from hence I shall be, as 
it were, hid from his face, deprived of the blessed 



384 PARADISE LOST. book xi. 

light of his countenance! here I could frequent, with 
worship and adoration, every place, where he had 
vouchsafed to appear to me in his divine presence; and 
could relate to my sons, " Upon this mountain he ap- 
peared to me; under this tree he stood visible; among 
these pines I heard his voice; here at this fountain did 
I talk with him." So many grateful altars I would 
raise up of grassy turf, and pile up every bright stone 
from the brook, in remembrance, or to be a monument 
to future generations: and upon these altars would I 
offer sweet smelling gums, and fruits, and flowers. In 
yonder lower world where shall I seek his bright ap- 
pearances, or trace his footsteps? for though I fled from 
him, when he was angry; yet being recalled to pro* 
longed life, and promised offspring, I now gladly be- 
hold, though but the utmost skirts of glory, and afar off 
adore his steps. 

To whom Michael, with great benignity, thus an- 
swered: Adam! thou knowest that heaven and all the 
earth are his; not only this rock, but his omnipresence 
fills land, sea, and air, and every kind that lives, warm- 
ed and cherished by his quickening and sustaining 
power. He gave thee the whole earth to possess, and 
rule; nor was it a despicable gift! do not surmise then, 
or think that his presence is confined to these narrow 
bounds of Paradise, or to Eden: this, perhaps, had 
had been thy capital seat, from whence all generations 
might have spread; and hither might have come from 
all the ends of the earth, to celebrate and reverence 
thee, their great progenitor. But thou hast lost this 
pre-eminence; being now brought down to dwell upon 
lower ground, and even with thy sons. Yet do not 
doubt, but in th? valley and in the plain, God is, even 
as he is here; and will be found alike present; still fol- 
lowing thee with many a sign of Ills presence, still 
compassing thee round with goodness and paternal love; 



chap. in. PARADISE LOST. 38£ 

he will not hide his face from thee, and thou shalt see 
the tract of his divine steps. Which that thou may est 
believe, and be fully confirmed in before thou depart 
from hence; know, that I am sent to shew thee what 
shall come to pass hereafter, to thee and to thy posteri- 
ty: expect to hear bad mixed with good, grace from 
above, contending with the sinfulness of men: and 
thereby endeavour to learn true patience, and to tem- 
per thy greatest joy with fear and holy sorrow; to be 
equally inured by moderation, to bear either the pros- 
perous or adverse state: so shalt thou lead thy life in 
greater safety, and be best prepared to endure thy mor- 
tal passage when it comes. — Ascend this hill; let Eve 
(for I have closed her eyes) sleep here below; whilst 
thou awakest to foresight, as once thou sleptest while 
she was formed to life: 

To whom Adam replied in this grateful manner: 
Ascend, safe guide! I follow thee, the path thou lead- 
est me; and entirely submit to the hand of heaven, 
however it may chasten me! willingly offering myself 
to bear the evil; arming myself to overcome by suffer- 
ing, and to obtain rest through labour; if it may be 
permited so to be. 



CHAPTER III. 

The angel sets before Adam in a vision, what shall happen until 

the flood. 

So, both the archangel Michael and Adam as- 
cended in the visions of God. It was the highest hill 
of Paradise, which they went up; from whose top the 
hemisphere of the earth, on the clearest view, lay stretch- 
ed out to the largest prospect of Adam's reach. Nor 

49 



386 PARADISE LOST. book xi. 

was that hill higher nor wider looking round, whereon 
(for a different cause) the devil set our second Adam, 
Christ JesUs, in the wilderness; to shew him all the 
kingdoms of the earth, and the glory of them. The eye 
of Adam might there command, wherever stood city 
of ancient or modern frame; the seats of the mightiest 
empires: from what was to be in future, the walls of 
Cainbalu, (q) the seat of Cathian Cham; (r) and Sa~ 
marcand, (s) by Oxus, (t) Temir's (u) kingdom, to 

(q) Cambalu, Camphala, or Cambala, Tat. i. e. the city of the 
great lord. A vast city in the north of Tartary, the capital of 
Cathai or China, and the same as Pekin; the residence of the 
emperors of China, sinee A.D. 1404. It is about 25 or 28 miles in 
compass, very populous, containing (as they report) 2,000,000 
souls, rich and of a vast trade; so that 1000 waggons, loaded 
with silk only, are imported every day. It hath 12 gates, di- 
vers royal palaces and stately temples. Geographers turn their 
face to the north, to find the elevation of the pole; and begin 
at the northern countries, when they describe the earth: there- 
fore Milton turns to the north, and begins with China on the 
right-hand; so comes to the west, and ends in Europe, in this 
survey of our hemisphere. 

(r) Cham, or Chan, Tat. i. e. the great lord or emperor. It 
is an ancient title of honour given to the emperor of Tatary 
and China. 

(s) Samarcand, Mamarcand, or Samarcant; Tatar, ancient- 
ly Shamarcand, Pers. i. e. razed or demolished by Shamare; 
having been once destroyed by one of that name, in his expedi- 
tion to China; others ivoody, being seated in a wood. It is the 
capital ofZagathy or Sogdiana, a southern province of Tarta- 
ry, and the metropolis of all Tatary for many ages. Bessus, 
general of the Bactrians, who murdered Darius, was seized 
there, and delivered to Alexander the Great, who put him to 
death on the same spot of ground, where he committed the fact. 
It was the chief seat and sepulchre of the great Tamerlain, w ho 
made it a magnificent and wealthy city; besides the vast 
riches from other nations, he sent 8000 camels laden with the 
spoils of Damascus at one time into it. A large and populous 
city; some houses are built of stone in a most pleasant valley, 
with an academy for Muhammedan learning. Here the best 



chap. in. PARADISE LOST. 387 

Pekin, (x) the seat of the emperor of China; and thence 

silk and paper in all Asia are made: the Chan's eastle is built 
of marble, but now it is in decay. 

(t) Oocus; Lat. Gr. i. e. swift, like the Tygris, because it 
falls from very high mountains, and has a rapid stream. A 
great river of Tatary, rising in mount Taurus; it parts Sog- 
diana and Margiana, and runs into the Caspian sea on the 
east side. The Tatars call it Amu, which signifies the same: 
and the Arabians call it Gibeon, i. e. force; because the source 
ef it bursteth out of the earth with vast violence. There Cy- 
rus was defeated by Tomyris queen of the Scythians or Tatars, 
about A.M. 3420; and Sabacham of Zagathian Tatary, by Is- 
>nael Sophy of Persia, A.D. 1514. 

(u) Temir, or Timnr*Lenc, by the Arabians, and Temir-Cu* 
thi by the Tatars; Tatar, i. e. happy or fortunate iron; be- 
cause of his victorious sword; and Tamerlane by us. A most 
victorious prince of the posterity of Zingis Chan, born April 6, 
A.D. 1336, in the city of Keish or Skehrsobz, i. e. the green 
city; about thirty miles from Samarcand. He began to reign 
A.D. 1370; and, like Alexander the Great, in 35 years subdu- 
ed more kingdoms, than the old Romans did in 800 years, viz. 
Babylon, Mesopotamia, Syria, Persia, Parthia, Egypt, India, 
China; and boasted that he had three parts of the world under 
his power. He defeated the proud Bajazet (Turk. i. e. light- 
ning; for the expedition of his conquests) and all the Turkish 
army, in that great battle near mount Stella in the plains of 
Angoria in Galatia, July 28, A.D. 1402. He was cruel, but a 
vast encourager of the Christians, though a Muhammedan by- 
profession; and died three years after that grand victory, Feb. 
8, 1405* at a village called Atrar and Otrar, distant from Sa- 
marcand about 304 miles; lived 70 years, 11 months, and 22 
days; and was buried in a magnificent tomb erected by himself 
for that purpose at Samarcand: but his sons lost all his 
conquests; of him the present Moguls are descended. He and 
Agesilaus, the sixth king of Sparta, were both lame of one foot, 
yet very valiant and successful generals. He was called the 
Wrath of God, and the Destroyer of the earth; and Aleric the 
king of the Goths, who plundered Rome, A.D. 410, and con- 
quered the Roman empire, the scourge of God; for their cruelty. 

(x) Paquin, Pekhu or Pecheli; Chinese, i. e. the northern 
zourt; because it is the north of China, as Nankin, i. e, the 



S88 PARADISE LOST. book xi. 

to Agra, (y) and Lahor, (%) imperial cities of the Great 

southern court, for the same reason. The capital city of 
the province of Pekin, and the metropolis of that vast empire, 
since the year 1404, thirty leagues from the famous wall (which 
is 1200 miles long, six fathoms high, built in twenty-seven years 
by 70,000,000 men, to keep out the Tartars, about A.M. 3728, 
and 300 before Jesus Christ) in a fertile plain, in the form of 
a vast square; each side being twelve Chinese lys or furlongs 
in length, i. e f 3600 paces, with 12 gates, stately palaces and 
temples, wherein are idols of massy gold, as big as the life. 
The streets are very straight, and at the longest 120 feet, but 
very dirty. It is the largest and most beautiful city on the face 
of the earth. There is a most prodigious bell, weighing 120,000 
pounds; it is 11 feet diameter, and 12 feet high. 

(y) Agra; Indian. The capital city of the province of Agra, 
larger than Dehli (Meg. i. e. a vast extent) and a great city in 
India; being nine miles, in the form of a half moon, with a 
mighty and admirable castle. It stands upon the river Gemn 
or Gemini, on this side the Ganges, and is the metropolis of the 
Mogul's empire; but the houses are low, mean, made up of 
straw, at a good distance and encompassed with high walls, 
that'theirlwomen may not be seen. It lies in 22 degrees and a half 
northern latitude, 210 from Surat, 150 from Lahor, and 35 from 
Dehli. Some reckon 25,000 Christian families there, besides 
heathens; but the Muhammedans are most in number. Agra was 
made the imperial city by Moghol Akbar, A.D. 1566, who call- 
ed it Akbarabed, i. e. the habitation of Akbar. Shah Jehah 
(Pers. L e. King John) removed from Agra to Dehli, March 29, 
A.D, 1647, and called it Shah Jehanabed,i. e. the habitation of 
King John. Dehli pays 8,125,0001. of yearly revenues to the 
emperor. 

{%) Lahor, or Lhor; Pers. from the Heb. i. e. light. The capi- 
tal city of the province or kingdom of Lahor, which contains seve- 
ral kingdoms. It is three leagues in length, yields 37 millions per 
ami. to the Mogul, and there the emperors kept their court, 
from A.D. 1155, until they removed to Agra; since it is 
very much diminished. There is a noble walk of tall trees 
on both sides of the road from it to Agra, which is 150 
miles distant. The province of Lahor is called also Pengah, 
Pers. i. e. the city of five waters; because it is watered by five 
rivers, viz, Bawy, Behat, Obcham, Willi, and Sindar. Many 
will have this country to be the kingdom of Kin g Poms, who 



chap. in. PARADISE LOST. 389 

Mogul; (a) down to the Golden Chersonese: (b) orwhere 
the emperor of Persia (c) sat in Eebatan, (d) or since 

so valiantly opposed Alexander the Great; and Lahor to be the 
Bucephalia, which he founded in the memory of his famous 
charging horse, called Bucephalus, Gr. i. e. the ox-head, who 
died there not of his wounds, but of old age: for he was the next 
conqueror after Bacchus, who opened a communication to the 
Indies, as far as China, 330 years before the incarnation, which 
facilitated the propagation of the gospel to St. Thomas, Bar- 
tholomew, Pantsenus, and other zealous preachers; and Tamer- 
lane was the next, Lahor is 360 miles from Agra to the south, 
and 180 miles east of Multan. 

(a) Moghul, or Moghol; Tatar, i. e. white; because they de- 
scended from the Moghol Tatars, or some white men, who in- 
vaded India under a captain or king called Mogor or Mogol; 
and erected a kingdom in Bengal, &c. about A.D. 1187. In the 
Tatarian Mung Lang signifies melancholy; because Mogul or 
Mungal the son of Alanza Chan, the first monarch, was a man 
of a melancholy disposition: their country, which lies inTurces- 
tan Tartary, is called still Moghelstan. The present Moguls 
are the race of the famous Tamerlane, who conquered India, A. 
D. 1400. Now the Moguls are emperors of all India, extending 
from Persia on the west, Tartary on the north, China on the 
east, and the Indian ocean on the south; they are the richest 
monarchs upon earth, and their dominions are of the vastest ex- 
tent, being divided into thirty -five different kingdoms. He and 
some of his subjects are Muliammedans; the rest are idolaters, 
except some Europeans, who trade there. 

(b) Chersonese, Lat. Gr. i. e. a peninsula. A geographical 
term; because it is a piece of land surrounded with sea, but at 
one place, which unites it to the continent or main land; an isth- 
mus. Many places are so called, but this is avast tract of land, 
comprehending the large peninsula of Ganges, the most south- 
ern part of the East Indies, between Sumatra and Borneo, called 
by the ancients the Golden Chersonese; because it abounded with 
gold: now the promontory of Malaea; from Malaca the chief 
city of it. 

(c) Emperor of Persia, whose royal seat was Ecbatan. Per- 
sia in sacred scripture is called Cuth, Heb. i. e. lurking or hid- 
den; also Elam, and the people Elamites; from Elam the son of 
Sem, who first settled there with his posterity. In the reign of 
Cyrus, about A.M. 3419, before Christ 531, it began first to be 



&9G PARADISE LOST, book xu 

in Ispahan: (e) or where the Czar (/) of Russia sat 

called Persia, Heb. i. e. horsemen or troopers; because he taught 
those people the use of war and horses. The Persians and Tar- 
tars call it Iris or Iran, from Irige, eldest son of Fraydun, se- 
venth king of the first race of their monarchs. It is the most 
ancient and renowned empire in both divine and human history. 
It is about 1440 miles in length, and 1260 in breadth, in the 
middle of Asia; having Tartary and the Caspian sea on the north, 
the river Indus on the east, the Indian ocean on the south; Eu- 
phrates, Tygris, and the Persian gulf on the west; and consists 
of eleven vast provinces, besides other acquisitions. Now the 
inhabitants call it Farsitan, and the empire of the Sophy. 

(d) Ecbatan, or Ecbatana; Arab. i. e. of divers colours; be- 
cause the walls and towers were built of seven different coloured 
stones, which did cast a glorious splendor. It is called Ache- 
metha, Esdr. vi. 2. and by the inhabitants Tebris, Casbin, now 
Tauris. It was built by Seleucus, according to Pliny; repaired 
and enlarged by Arphaxad, whom some call Dejoces. See Ju- 
dith i. 1, 2, 3, 4. about A.M. 3400, according to Herodotus. It 
was the first capital of Media, then of Persia; was the richest 
city in the world, and consisted of many stately palaces, courts, 
sepulchres of their emperors, and of their whole treasures. There 
Daniel the prophet erected an admirable palace. The emperors 
©f Persia had four noble palaees; they resided at Ecbatana in 
the winter, at Susa in the summer, at Persepolis in the autumn, 
and Babylon in the rest of the year. The Turks sacked it of- 
ten, but the Persians have kept possession of it since A.D. 1603. 

(e) Ispahan, by some Hagistan, by the Americans Spuhun, 
and now Isfahan, Pers. i. e. the happy city, or the city of the 
Whites. The metropolis of all Persia, in the province of Iraca 
or Erach, the ancient Parthia; it is 70 miles south from Casbin, 
80 north from Ormus. Scach Abbas the emperor of Persia, fixed 
his royal seat there, beautified, enlarged, and enriched it; and 
there his successors have kept their courts these 200 years past. 
It is thought to be the aneient Aspadama or Spada, and was 
called Hecatompolis, Gr. i. e. having 100 gates, but now 7. It 
is one of the greatest cities upon earth, walled round with earthen 
walls, which is a singular thing in Persia, about thirty miles 
round, in a very fruitful plain, and washed by the river Zen- 
fleru, which is as broad and deep as the river Thames is at Lon- 
don; very rich, of a vast trade from all places, and populous: 



chap. ni. PARADISE LOST. 39i 

in Moscow; (g) or the Turkish sultan (h) in Bizan^ 

they reckon a million of souls in it; having 162 mosques, 43 col- 
leges, 1802 inns, 273 baths, 12 large burying plaees, which are 
without the city, as they are over all Persia; and so they were 
over all the earth, until about 1000 years ago; but some houses 
take up 20 acres of ground. The Armenians have an archbi- 
shop and 20 churches in it. It is about 2000 miles from Con- 
stantinople to the south-east, and 2600 from London. There is 
also the first madresha or academy of all the nine that are in 
Persia. 

(/ ) Czar; or Tzar, i. e. king or Sclavon. the emperor. A 
title of the emperors of Muscovy or Russia. It was first as- 
sumed by Iwan Wasielewitz, when he conquered the city of 
Cuscan, and was crowned there, A.D. 1552. 

(g) Moscow or Moskowa; Heb. from the Moschi or Mosci, 
an ancient people, who descended from Mesech, the son of Ja- 
phet, Gen. x. 2. Ezek. xxvii. 13. xxxviii. 3. and first inhabited 
the country of Colchis. It is the chief city of Muscovy, upon 
the banks of the river Muscow, and gives the name to that vast 
empire in the north of Europe. This city is old, large, popu- 
lous, and rich; built of wood, ill contrived, not paved, and was 
founded A. D. 1334. The chief church called Jerusalem, was 
founded by John Basilides I. But he put out the eyes of the ar- 
chitect, that he might never contrive nor build such another. 
The Tartars burnt 80,000 houses of it, A.D. 1571. The Poles 
41,000; and destroyed about 200,000 souls, A.D. 1611. It was 
again laid in ashes, A.D. 1699, 1701. It is about 16 miles in 
compass, and contains about 700,000 inhabitants. It abounds 
with merchants out of all nations, and was made the royal seat 
«f the empire by John duke of Russia about 300 years ago. It 
stands in the middle of the country, fenced with lakes and threfc 
strong walls. It is about 750 miles from Stockholm to the easl, 
750 from Warsaw to the north, 1000 miles from Constantinople 
to the north-east, and 1500 miles distant from Paris and London. 
The empire is vast and large, in length about 1699, and about 
1100 miles in breadth. See B. X. N. 431. The Muscovites were 
rude and barbarous heathens, until they embraced Christianity 
from the Grecians, A.D. 98 6, printing, A.D. 1560; and now they 
are trained up in all polite literature, arts and sciences by Peter 
the Great: their alphabet consists of 42 letters, which very much 



392 PARADISE LOST. book xi. 

tium, (i) eye could also discover the empire of Negus, (k) 

resemble the Greek ones. The history of the Moscovites doth 
not rise above 200 years past. 

(h) Turkish Sultan; because the Turks settled there first, 
and afterwards broke through the Caspian straits, and set- 
tled in Armenia, about A.D. 844. At that time the Caspian 
sea was froze over 13 foot deep, and men walked 100 miles on 
the ice of it. A kingdom or province of Zagathian Tartary, 
lying between Great Tartary and the empire of the Great Mo- 
gul, on the east of Cathay or Catha, having Tartaria Propria 
on the north; and Indostan on the south, and on the east side of 
the Caspian sea. Some take it to be the kingdom of Thebet 9 
in the said Tartary. Here, the emperors of the Turks, who are 
descended from the ancient Turks of Tartary. 

(i) Bixantium; from Bizas, the captain of the Megarean 
fleet, the first founder of it: it was first called Lygus, from its 
founder; afterwards repaired by Pausanias king of Sparta, about 
A.M. 3307. An ancient city of Thrace, and the last in Europe 
on the Bosphorus Thracius ( See B. II. 1018.) It was destroy- 
ed by Sept. Severus, after a siege of three years, and turned into 
a village, about A.D. 196, to punish the citizens for revolting; 
but rebuilt, enlarged and beautified by Constantine the Great, 
who made it the royal seat of the Roman empire, which proved 
the ruin of it, and commanded it to be called New Rome, A.D. 
300. But it is commonly called after him Constantinople, i, e. 
the city of Constantine. It was also called Parthenopolis, Gr. 
i. e. the city of the virgin; because it was dedicated to the Vir- 
gin Mary. The Turks call it Stamboul; which they say signi- 
fieth fair, peace, and plenty. It answers to these properties in- 
deed; but Stamboul or Istambol is corrupted for Eis ten polin, 
Gr. i. e. into the city, and commonly the Port; because it is the 
greatest and finest port they have, or perhaps is in the world; 
being frequented by merchants from all parts of Europe, Asia, 
and Africa continually. Muhammed II. took it from the Greeks 
A.D. 1453, and since it has been the grand seat of the Turkish 
empire: it yields the fairest prospect without of any city, but 
the meanest within: it is 900 miles from Rome, 1460 off Paris, 
1570 from London, 1850 from Madrid, and 1000 from Moscow. 

(k) Negus, or Neguz; Ethiop. i. e. emperor. The emperor 
of Abissinia in Upper Ethiopia: a title which the Abissines be- 
stow upon their prince. 



ohap. in. PARADISE LOST. 398 

to its utmost port Eroco; (I) and tlie less maritime king- 
doms of Mombaza, (m) and Quiloa, (n) and Melind, (o) 

(Z) Eroco, Erquico, Jlrqiiien, and by others Erroeo; Ethi- 
op. It is a seaport town of Ethiopia or the Red sea, near the 
Persian ocean, with a fine harbour and a very good trade, and 
was the outmost boundary of the vast Abyssinian empire, to 
the north-east of Africa. 

(m) Mombaza, Monbaza, or Mombazza; Arab. For this, 
and several cities on that coast, were built by a colony of the 
Arabs, who about A.J). 930, settled a trade there. A very 
large and wealthy city, having a good trade, and is the capital 
of a small kingdom of the same name, in a little island, 12 miles 
in compass; 70 miles from Melind, 130 leagues from Quiloa, 
near the line, in the Eastern ocean; subject to the emperor of 
Ethiopia in Zanguebar, but very fruitful and populous: it was 
once possessed by the Portuguese, but now subject to the king 
of Mombosa, who calls himself emperor of the world. Zan- 
guebar and Zingebar, Ind. comes from Bar; i. e. the coast of 
the Zinges or Nigros, who first traded there with the Arabs, 
about A.D. 930. 

(n) Quiloa, or Kiloa; Ethiopic. A capital, rich, and plea- 
sant city, upon a river, and in an island of the same name, be- 
tween Mosambiquc and Melind, on the east shore of Africa, 
near Zanguebar, in Ethiopia Inferior. This kingdom extend- 
ed 230 leagues along the coast, until Francis de Almeyda burnt 
the city, and made the kingdom tributary to Portugal, A.D. 1303. 
But the natives rebuilt it, and pay a yearly tribute to the king 
of Portugal. They speak the Arabic, and are Muhammedans. 
The kings of Quiloa were masters of Mombaza, Melinda, and 
other islands thereabout. The Arabs traded first there, then the 
Muhammedans, and at last the Portuguese. 

(o) Melind, or Melinda; Ethiop. The capital of a small 
kingdom on the coast of Zanguebar, between Mombaza and Pa-* 
ta, belonging to Ethiopia Superior, near the lake Caliee. The 
town is near the sea, with a convenient port: the king of it made 
a league with Emanuel king of Portugal, A.D. 1300. The 
city is very rich, and abounds with great plenty; their sheep are 
so fat, that the tail of them often weighs 30 ponnds, and some 
more. The king of Melinda is served in great state and splen- 
dor, is a Muhammedan, as are most of his subjects; the rest are 
heathens. 

30 



394 PARADISE LOST. book xi, 

and Sofala, (p) which is thought to be Ophir,) (q) to 
the realm of Congo, (r) and Angola, (s) farthest south: 

(P) Sofala, Sophala, or Zophala; Ethiop. A petty kingdom 
in Lower Ethiopia, between the river Magnice on the south, 
and the river Cuama to the north; so called from Sofala, the ca- 
pital of it, which is situated in a little island upon the Ethio- 
pic ocean. It is supposed by some to be the Ophir (Heb. rich; 
because it abounded with gold, pearls, ivory, peacocks, &c. See 
2 Chron. viii. 18.) to which king Solomon sent his fleet; from 
the abundance of gold and other rich commodities of it. There 
merchants of Arabia Felix, afterwards the Muhammedans, es- 
tablished their religion, and settled a great trade there; and 
the Portuguese since. Milton follows this opinion here. All 
this vast tract on the sea coast is called Caffraria, and the peo- 
ple CafFers, i. e. Infidels, who have no religion. There being a 
different people within 10 or 12 miles from one another, they 
have continual wars among themselves. 

(?) Ophir; Heb. Arab. i. e. abounding in riches; being a 
place where the purest gold abounded; about which there are 
many conjectures among the learned: or from Ophir, the son of 
Joktan, the son of Sem, who first settled there. There is one 
of that name in Arabia, whence king David brought much gold; 
another in the East Indies, from which king Solomon and Hiram 
king of Tyre fetched gold and many other valuable commodities; 
which some now take to be the island of Ceylon, where there 
is an haven called Hippor, and the Phcenicians, Ophir; others 
Pegu; some Sumatra, Japan, Taprobna, Sofala, &c. 

(r) Congo; Ethiop. It is a vast country, called by some Low- 
er Guinea, which has part of negroland on the north, Ethiopia 
on the east, Caffaria on the south, the ocean and Guinea on the 
west, and lies on the western shore of Africa in the Lower Ethi- 
opia; so called from the capital city. Others call it Manicon- 
go, i. e. the province of Congo. It is very fruitful, abounds 
with all sorts of very good fruits, plants, herbs, beasts, croco- 
diles, and serpents; some of these serpents are so very large, that 
they devour a whole stag at once. Congo is divided into six pro- 
vinces, viz. Bamba, Songo, Sunda, Pango, Patta and Penba. 
The inhabitants were converted to the Christian faith by the 
Portuguese, A.J). 1490; but forsook it, because the plurality of 
wives was denied them, as Sir Walter Raleigh says. 

(s) Angola; Ethiop. The ancient and true name of it was 
Ambonde, and the people were called Ambondes; until one of 



ghap. in. PARADISE LOST. 395 

or thence, from the flood of Niger, (t) to mount Atlas, 
the kingdoms of Almanzor; (a) Fez, (x) and Susa, (y) 

their princes, called Mani-Angola, i. e. the governor of Angola, 
about 360 years ago, with the assistance of the Portuguese sub- 
dued many petty neighbouring kings, and made himself sole 
monarch of them. He, for his mighty acts, was called in their 
language Irene, i. e. The Great; and from his name this king- 
dom was called Angola. This kingdom is situated between Ma- 
laman on the south, Malemba on the east, and Proper Congo 
on the west, near the line; is well watered, very fruitful, and 
populous; so that the king can raise an army of 100,000 men. 
The people on the sea coast are Christians; but those in the in- 
land regions are heathens. 

(t) Niger, or JVigir; Lat. i. e. black; because it runs through 
a soil all covered over with dust, that is black and scorched with 
the sun. It is the greatest river on that side of Africa, rising out 
of a lake of the same name in the country of Medra, of Upper 
Ethiopia, divides Nigritia (Lat. i. e. the land of the Blacks) 
into two parts, east and west, makes a lake called Borno, passes 
by Congo, there it makes another lake called Guarda; and. 
after a course of 750 German miles westward, falls into the 
Atlantic ocean by six great streams, near Cape Verd. It over- 
flows its banks as the Nile and many other rivers do, for eight 
days in the month of June, and from the same natural cause. 
The people of Nigritia are all Pagans. 

(w) Mmanzor, rather Mmansor; Arab. i. e. the victor; as 
Seleucus king of Syria was styled Nicator, Gr. i. e. a victor. 
Joseph Almanzor I. was king of Morocco, who invaded Spain 
with 60,000 horse and 100,000 foot, A.D. 1158. He usurped 
the territories of the Spanish Moors, who invited him over, was 
beaten by the Christians, and slain with an arrow at the siege 
of Santaren in Portugal. 

(x) Fez, rather Fess and Fessa; Arab. i. e. sprinkled with 
dust: spread out or large: or from Phaz or Paz, Heb. i. e. fine 
gold; because gold abounded thereabout. A large wide king- 
dom on the west of Barbary, having the Mediterranean sea on 
the north, the Atlantic ocean on the west, the river Mulvia on 
the east, mount Atlas and the river Ommirati on the south, 
which part it from Morocco. The country is mountainous and 
desert; but in some places it produces all manner of grain, al- 
monds, figs, very large grapes, cattle, leopards, the best horses 




398 PARADISE LOST. book xi. 

Morocco and Algiers, (z) and Tremisen: (a) from thence 

in all Barbary, and the fiercest lions in all Africa. It belongs 
to the emperor of Morocco, is divided into seven provinces, and 
is so called from Fez the capital city, which was so called from 
Phuts or Phut, the son of Ham: for there is the river Phthuth 
near a river of the same name, and another called Sebon. It is 
about 12 miles round, and contains many gardens, palaces, 
mosques, and about 300,000 people; of whom there are about 
0000 Jews, and many rich merchants. The chief mosque in 
Fez is a mile and a half in compass, the roof is 150 yards long 
and 80 broad; it hath 30 large gates, and above 300 cisterns to 
was}i in. By other writers this country is called Lybia. 

(y) Susa; from Sus, the principal city, and a river of the 
same name: Arab. i. e. a lily. Another kingdom of Morocco, 
containing seven provinces, not well known as yet. It hath 
Morocco on the north, the kingdom of Tafilet on the east, the 
Atlantic ocean on the west, and is not far from mount Atlas. 

(z) Algiers; Arab. i. e. the island; on account of a small is- 
land opposite to the mole. The largest kingdom in Barbary, 
about 6000 miles from east to west, and 250 from north to south, 
upon the Mediterranean sea, over against Minorca, and 100 
miles from Sallee. It was the capital of Mauritania, in the 
days of king Juba, and has been subject to the Romans, Goths, 
Arabians, Sfc. The present inhabitants are Moors, who settled 
there after their expulsion out of Spain, «3.D. 1492, It is now 
very rich, and the most noted pirates in Africa abound there. 
The English burnt their ships in 1655 and 16"0. The French 
bombarded their city in 1888. The city is one of the finest, 
largest, strongest, richest, and most populous in all Africa: the 
city is a league about. The Africans call it Muzgunna, from 
the Bene Muzgunna, i. e. the sons of Muzgunna, who first 
founded it, long before the Romans: the Arabs call it AI-Jezirat; 
the Moors, Izeir; the Turks, Jezair; and the Europeans, Alger, 
Algiers, Algier, 8$c. It lies in a spacious bay close by the sea, 
at the bottom of a steep hill. The mole was begun by Iieyra- 
din Barbarossa, i. e. Red-Beard, a pirate, A.D. 1531. 

(a) Tremisen, Tremizen, Tremissen, properly Flemizen; 
Arab. The Arabs call it Marsa, i. e. a port; and Al-kibir, i. e. 
the great; being the Portus magnris of the ancients; the finest, 
safest, and largest harbour in all Africa, but now it is a poor 
remnant of a vast kingdom. A kingdom of Barbary, west of 



chap. in. f ARADISE LOST. 397 

he saw Europe, and where Rome was to hear domi- 
nion over the rest of the world. Perhaps he also saw 
in the spirit, rich Mexico, (b) the seat of Montezume; 

Algiers, about 300 miles from Tremissa; the capital city, which 
is very large, populous, and noble. It hath Fez on the west, 
Tunis on the east, and the Mediterranean sea on the north. 
The Romans called it Ceesarea Mauritania. Some say this city 
was the royal seat of king Juba, and called Julia. This king- 
dom is about 380 miles long, but not above 25 miles broad. 

(b) Mexico; American, i. e. a spring or fountain, which rises 
out of a little hill, called Chapultepes, three miles from the city, 
but conveyed in two pipes upon arches of stone and brick: or 
from Mexiti, the first founders of it under Mexi their captain, 
about Jl.D. 720: or from Mexitili, their grand idol. The first 
name of it was Tenuchitan, i. e. & fruit out of a stone; because 
it was first founded near a great stone, and tree bearing sweet 
fruit, called Nuchtli; and by the Spaniards, Tunas; wherefore 
Mexico beareth for its arms, a tree springing out of a stone. It 
stamleth in the middle of two lakes, like Venice in the Adriatic 
sea, and Mantua a fine city of Italy, in a lake 5 miles long; one 
is fresh, standing water, and full of fish; the other is saltish, 
bitter, ebbeth and floweth, but hath no kind of fish: one of them 
is 15 miles long, and as much broad; the other is 45 miles in 
circuit: it was taken, plundered and burnt by the cruel Hernan- 
do Cortez, Aug. 13. Jt.D. 1521, in the 140th year from the foun- 
dation of the royal seat there; who murdered above 1,000,000 
of miserable souls. God punished them by this cruel scourge, 
for their abominable idolatry: for they had 2000 gods, to whom 
they offered human sacrifices; one time 5000: they sacrificed 
20,000 men a year; so that in the great temple, human blood 
dashed upon the walls lay congealed above a foot thick. This 
city giveth name to the vast kingdom of Mexico in North Arae- 
I'iea, and to the whole northern continent of it, which is about 
23,000 miles round. It suffered much by an inundation of the 
lake, Jl.B. 1629, whereby 40,000 people perished, and by ano- 
ther in 1634. But now it is the richest, noblest, and most popu- 
lous city in all North America, consisting of 70,000 houses, be- 
sides stately churches, courts of judicature, colleges, palaces, 
Sfc. The people are of the communion of the church of Rome, 
the rest Pagans. 



398 PARADISE LOST. book xi. 

(c) and Cusco, (d) in Peru, (e) the richer seat of Ata- 

(c) Montezume, Motezume, Molezuma, or Molencama; Amer- 
ican, i. e. a surly prince; the second of that name, and ninth 
king of Mexico; one of the mightiest emperors upon earth; he 
had 2000 tributary kings; his topac, i. e. palace; was most mag- 
nificent and immensely rich, his attendance and grandeur in- 
credibly noble; until Ferdinand Cortes with 9000 Spaniards, 
assisted with the people of Thascala (Amer. i. e. a land of 
bread, or a lady of bread, from Tecal, i. e. a lady, and Tescal, 
i. e. a cake or bread) vanquished his army, consisting of 350,000 
men, from A.D. 1518 to 1521, and have possessed Mexico ever 
since. 

(d) Cusco'ot Cuzco; Amer. A vast country of South Amer- 
ica, from the capital and royal city of their Inge or Yncas. i. e. 
kings. The city stands in a plain among hills, in a fine air, a 
pleasant and fruitful land, and is as beautiful as any city in Eu- 
rope: the walls were built of four-square stone with wonderful 
art and labour; though they had not an iron tool, but grinded 
them upon others, and covered them with plates of solid gold 
and silver. It was divided into Hanan Cusco, i. e. the higher 
Cusco; and Harin Cusco, i. e. the lower Cusco; and so vastly 
rich, that Francis Pizardus, who sacked it, got such incredible 
treasures, that the fifth part, which fell to the king of Spain, 
came to 400,000 florins; for all the gold and silver of Peru was 
carried thither; but since then it is very much impaired in every 
respect. It was ruined by an earthquake, A.D. 1650. 

(e) Peru or Perou; Amer. i. e. a fisherman or seaman; be- 
cause the Spaniards asked one of the natives the name of the 
country, who answered Perou, which signifies so much in their 
language. All the south of America, from the straits of Magel- 
lan to the Isthmus of Darien or Panama, about 4000 miles in 
length, and 17,000 in compass, is called Peru; which is a large 
peninsula, like Africa. Here, a particular kingdom of it, the 
best of them all, and vastly rich in gold, silver, and diamonds. 
This is bounded on the north with Terra Firma, on the east 
with the country of the Amazons, and Rio de la Plata; on the 
south with Chili, and on the west witli the South sea; 1400 
miles in length, and about 400 in breadth. It was discovered by 
Columbus, A.D. 1496. By Alausa, by Vespueius; and conquered 
by Francis Pizarro, Jl.D. 1525. But since that time it is very 
much decaved and ruinons. 



chap. in. PARADISE LOST. 399 

balipa; (/) and Guiana, (g) not yet plundered and en- 

(/) Mabalipa, or Mabaliba; Amer. The last and one of the 
most magnificent and peaceable emperors of Peru. Francis Pisar- 
rus, with 150 foot and a few horse, conquered him with 25,000 
men, and many millions of miserable people; but after the prince 
had given him a house full of refined gold and silver, valued at 
fifteen millions, to save his life, the cruel villain strangled him, 
contrary to his faith and promise, Jl.D. 1533. The seat of the 
Peruvian emperors had been at Cusco for 400 years; therefore 
all these immense riches were amassed therein; so that the 
royal Palace, the Temple of the Sun, the walls and houses were 
covered with gold and silver; their pots and other utensils were 
of the same metal; which Milton takes notice of here. 

(»*) Guiana, Gujana, or Guaiana; Amer. A large country 
of South America, under the line, weil watered, and the most 
fruitful and beautiful place in the world; they have an ever- 
lasting spring; and count a man dies young, if he does not live 
above 100 years. It is called so from the river Wia or Wiana; 
and by our sailors the North Cape; because it is the most re- 
markable land on the north coast of Peru. It is bounded on 
the north and east with the Atlantic ocean, on the south with 
the river of the Amazons, and on the west with the river Oroo- 
noko: it is about 400 miles in length, and 150 in breadth. The 
inhabitants are still cannibals, Lat. i. e. men-eaters, like dogs, 
and very savage pagans. It was discovered Jl.D. 1541, by 
the Spaniards. When Milton wrote this, the country had 
not been robbed and enslaved by them, as others of Mexico 
aud Peru had been; but now it is inhabited by the English, 
French, Dutch, and other Europeans. The river Amazone is 
certainly the greatest, richest, and most fertile river upon the 
face of the earth; (if we may except Rio de la Plata, which is 
navigable for the greatest ships, above 200 leagues, and sixty 
leagues wide at the mouth.) It is about 1276, some say 1800 
Spanish leagues, i. e. about 4408 English miles in length. It 
runs from the west of Peru, to the Eastern ocean, 84 leagues 
broad at the mouth, and is replenished with 1000 other rivers 
through its course, washing many rich countries. The old name 
of it was Pajan quiris, i. e. the great river; and Hohio,\. e. the 
fair river: but the Europeans called it and the country so, at 
their first discovering of it; because they saw many warlike 
women upon ihe banks of it, opposing their landing and con- 



4j00 PARADISE LOST. book xi. 

slaved; whose great city the sons of Geryon (h) call 
El Dorado, (i) But Michael for nobler sights remov- 
ed the film from the eyes of Adam, which that false 
fruit had occasioned, that had promised to give them 
clearer sight; then the angel purged the visual nerve 
with eye-bright and rue (for he had much to see) and 
dropt three drops of water into his eyes from the well 
of life. So great power these ingredients had over 
Adam, that they pierced even to the utmost seat of his 
mind; and he, not being longer able to refrain from 
closing his eyes, sunk down, and all his spirits became 
entranced; but the angel soon raised him up gently by 
the hand, and thus recalled his attention: 

Adam! now open thy eyes; and first behold the ef- 
fects, which thy original sin hath wrought on some who 

quest, resembling tlie ancient Amazons B. IX. N. 1110. See a 
survey of it, performed at tlie order of the king of Spain, by M. 
Christ. d'Acugna, translated into English, 1699. 

(Ji) Geryon; Gr. i. e. a brawler. A king of Catalonia in 
Spain, who founded Granada, a city of Catalonia, and called it 
by his own name. The poets say he had three bodies, i. e. he was 
a gigantic tyrant, and king of three kingdoms, viz. Majorca, 
Minorca, and Ehusa; though he was rather a king of Epirus, 
as the learned Bochart proves; but Hercules slew him for his 
cruelty. By Geryon's sons Milton means the Spaniards. 

(I) El Borada, or Elder ado, the golden city; from Eldorador, 
i. e. a gilder; Sp. from the Lat. aumtm, gold; as Babylon is 
called the golden city, because of tlie vast treasure therein, Isa. 
xiv. 4. Manoa or a Manlioa, the capital and royal city of Gui- 
ana; the greatest of South America, and perhaps on earth, for 
Biego Ordas, one of Cortez's companions, entered it at noon 
and travelled until night, before he came to the king's palace; 
and there he saw so much gold in coin, plate, armour, and other 
utensils, that the Spaniards called it by this new name: it stands 
upon the west shore of the great lake Parima. The Spaniards 
say, the Peruvians built it, when they fled from their cruelty 
and tyranny. Others, it is a chimera, and the philosopher's 
stone of the Spaniards; for many have attempted to find it, but 
in vain. 



chap. in. PARADISE LOST. 401 

are to spring from thee; who never touched the forbid- 
den fruit, nor conspired with the serpent; nor commit- 
ted sin; yet from that crime of thine derived corruption; 
to bring forth more violent deeds. 

Adam opened his eyes, and beheld a field, part 
arable, and that had been tilled, whereon there lay 
sheaves of corn newly reaped; the other part of the 
field was sheep-walks and sheep-folds, and in the midst 
there stood a plain altar of green turf, which was as a 
land-mark between: thither, after a while, a sweaty 
reaper brought from his tillage first fruits; the green 
ear, and the yellow sheaf, un chosen, as they came to 
hand: next came a shepherd, with meeker looks, bring- 
ing the firstlings (k) of his flock, the choicest and \he 
best; then sacrificing, laid the intrails and the fat of 
the lambs, strewed with incense, upon wood that he had 
hewn, and performed all due rites: his offering was soon 
consumed by fire from heaven; but the offering of the 
former not, for his was not sincere: whereat he inward- 
ly raged, and as they talked, he rose up against him 
and slew him; striking him into the midriff with a 
stone: he fell down, and growing deadly pale, he 
groaned out his soul with an effusion of gushing blood. 
Adam, much dismayed in his heart at the sight, in 
haste cried out to the angel: 

O Teacher! some great mischief hath happened to 
that meek Man, who had sacrificed with a pure heart: 
is piety and true devotion rewarded after this manner. 

(k) Firstlings; Sax. 0. E. from first: the young of cattle, which 
were first brought forth. Here the first fruits of every thing 
the earth and the flocks yielded, which were offered to God, 
as a sacrifice of thankfulness. This custom was handed 
down among all nations by tradition. It was made a law in 
Israel, 2000 years after this, that none might eat young lambs, 
corn, bread, or any fruits, until they brought an offering to God 
first, Levit. xxiii. 14. And such laws were made long after 
that, among the Greeks, Latins, and other nations. 
51 



403 PARADISE LOST. book m. 

To whom Michael answered thus: (he being him- 
self also moved) These, Adam, are two brethren, 
and are to descend immediately from thee: the unjust 
hath for envy slain the just, because his brother's of- 
fering found acceptance from heaven, and his not; but 
the bloody deed will be avenged, though here thou 
hast seen him die, rolling in dust and blood. 

To which our first father made answer: Alas! 
both for the deed, and that which is the cause of it! 
but, is this that I have now seen death? is this the 
way that I must return again to my native dust? O sight 
of terror! foul and ugly only to see, horrid to think of; 
then alas, how terrible must it be to feel? 

To whom Michael replied: Thou hast seen Death 
in his first shape, exerting his power over Man: but 
there are many ways of dying, and entering into that 
dark state: all of them are very dismal; and jet to the 
senses are more terrible at the entrance, than they ar% 
within. Some (as thou hast just now seen) shall die 
by the stroke of violence, and some by fire, flood, or fa- 
mine; but more by intemperance in meats and drinks, 
which shall bring dire diseases upon the earth: of 
which there shall appear a monstrous crew before thee; 
that thou mayest know what misery the eating of the 
forbidden fruit shall bring on men. 

Immediately there appeared a place before his eyes, 
sad, noisome, and dark; it seemed a lazar-house, 
wherein were laid numbers of people, sick of all manner 
of diseases: all maladies of ghastly cramps and distor- 
tions, faint sickness, agony at heart; all kinds of fevers^ 
convulsions, falling sickness, catarrhs, the stone, ulcers, 
eholic pangs, raving madness, moping melancholy, lu- 
nacy, pining consumption, hectics, pestilence, drop- 
sies, and asthmas, and rheumatisms. It was very 
dreadful, to see the sick tossing and throwing them- 
selves about! and to hear their deep groans! every bed 



chap. in. PARADISE LOST. 403 

or couch having one on it, despairing of life; and death 
seemed to be ready at hand to triumph over them; but 
yet delayed his stroke, though so often called upon as 
their chiefest good, and last and only hope. Who, 
unless his heart were hard as stone, could behold with 
dry eyes a sight so full of sorrow and deformity? Adam 
was not able, but wept, though he was not born of wo- 
man: compassion overcame all the strength of his na- 
ture as a Man, and he wept a considerable space of 
time; until consideration and firmer thought put a re- 
straint upon the excess of his tears, and scarcely able 
to utter his words for sorrow, he renewed his complaint: 

O miserable mankind! to what I fall degraded! 
and to what a wretched state reserved! it were better 
to end here, and never be born! why is life given, to 
be snatched in this manner from us? rather, why is 
it forced thus upon us? who if we knew what we 
were to receive, would either not accept life when 
offered us; or having once accepted of it, beg to lay 
it down, and be glad to be so dismissed in peace? 
can the image of God in Man (created once so goodly 
and so erect, though since Mien into guilt) thus be de- 
based to such unsightly sufferings, under such inhuman 
pains? why should not Man, who still in part retains 
the likeness and image of God, be free and exempt 
from such deformities, in consideration that his Ma- 
ker's image is stamped upon him? 

Their Maker's image forsook them, answered the 
archangel, then, when they sunk, and lessened them- 
selves so, that they broke his command to serve ungo- 
verned appetite, and took upon them his image, whom 
they then served; following the vice of a brute, in eat- 
ing the fruit of the forbidden tree; for by the serpent's 
eating, Eve was induced to sin. Therefore their pun- 
ishment by distemper, is as abject; not disfiguring 
God's likeness, but theirs: or, if it be the likeness of 



I 



I 



404 PARADISE LOST. book xi. 

God, it is defaced by themselves, while they pervert 
the pure healthful rules of nature to loathsome siekness; 
and it is just it should have this effect, since they did 
not reverence the image of God in themselves. 

I grant, said Adam, that all this is just, and I sub- 
mit: but is there not yet another way, besides these 
painful passages, how we may suffer Death, and mix 
with the earth out of which we were made? 

There is, replied Michael, another way not painful, 
if thou observe the rule well, of taking nothing to ex- 
cess; but be careful to observe temperance in eating 
and drinking; seeking from thence, not to satisfy a 
gluttonous desire, but due nourishment: so may est 
thou live, until many years pass over thy head; until 
thou drop like ripe fruit, down to thy mother earth; or 
being quite ripened for Death, be gathered with ease, 
and not plucked harshly. This is old age; but then 
thou must outlive thy youth, and all thy strength and 
beauty; all which will change, and thou be withered, 
weak, and gray -haired: thy senses then will become 
unaetive, nor have any relish of pleasure, like what 
thou hast now: and, for the air of youth (cheerful and 
full of hope and joy) a melancholy damp of coldness 
will reign in thy blood, oppress and weigh down thy 
spirits; and lastly, consume the balm, and extinguish 
the lamp of life. 

To whom our first ancestor replied: Henceforward, 
I will not fly from Death, nor would I much prolong 
life; but rather be glad to know, how I might best and 
easiest get rid of that load which I must keep, until 
the day appointed to render it up, and attend with pa- 
tience the time of my dissolution! 

To this Michael replied: Neither love nor hate life; 
but all the time thou livest, live well; whether for few 
or many days, leave that to the will of God; and now 
prepare thyself to see another sight. 



,3Hap. in. PARADISE LOST. 405 

Adam looked and saw a spacious plain, upon which 
there were tents (I) of different sizes and colours: by 
some there were cattle grazing; from others might be 
heard the melodious sound of instruments; the harp, 
and organ; and he was seen, who moved their stops 
and chords, his nimble fingers going through all pro- 
portions, low and high, corresponded in all the parts. 
In another part stood one (m) labouring at a forge, 
who melted two massy pieces of iron and brass (wheth- 
er found where accidental fire had destroyed the woods, 
upon some mountain or valley, down to the veins of the 
earth; thence flowing hot to some cave's mouth: or whe- 
ther washed by streams from under ground) he drained 
the liquid ore into moulds fitly prepared; from which 
he first formed the tools he was to work with; and then 
what else might be wrought or cast in metal. After 
these, on the hither side of the plain, a different sort 
of people descended from the high neighbouring hills, 
which was their habitation: by their appearance they 
seemed just men, and the whole purpose of their study 
to worship God rightly, and to know his works, which 
are not hidden; nor to know those things last, which 
might preserve freedom and peace to men: they had 
not walked long upon the plain, when behold a com- 
pany of fair women issued forth from the tents, wan- 

(Z) Tents; Fr. from the Lat. i. e. holding or containing; be- 
cause therein men and their household stuff were contained: or 
from Nata, Heb. i. e. stretched out; because they were movea- 
ble habitations, extended upon the ground. A military term. 
Tabernacles, booths, or pavillions, with coverings made of can- 
vas, to shelter men from the injuries of the air; for soldiers, 
when they are in the field; then four or five of them lie in one 
tent, Sfc. In the first ages of the world men lived in tents only; 
and so they do this day in many parts of Asia and Africa; but 
through Europe they arc only used for soldiers. 

(m) One; i. e. Tubal Cain, the first master of smiths, Gen. 
iv. 22. 



406 PARADISE LOST. book xi. 

tonly and gaily dressed, and adorned with jewels; they 
sung soft amorous songs to instruments of musie, and 
came on, dancing: the men, though they were grave, 
eyed them as they passed, and let their eyes rove with- 
out restraint; until drawn by strong passion and incli- 
nation, they began to like them, and each chose her he 
liked: and now they began to talk of love, and let the 
day pass on in nothing else; then grown warm, they 
light the nuptial torch, and invoke Hymen, then first 
invoked, to give a sanction to marriage rites; all the 
tents resound with festival and music. Such happy 
interview and intercourse, the fair consequence of love 
and youth not lost, songs, garlands, flowers, and charm- 
ing symphonies touched the heart of Adam with plea- 
sure, who was soon inclined to admit of delight; (which 
is indeed too much the bent of nature!) and he thus ex- 
pressed it: 

Blest angel! and one of the chief of heaven! true 
opener of my eyes! this vision seems much better than 
those two passed, and foretells more hope of peaceful 
days: those were full of hate and Death, or pains and 
diseases much worse; here Nature seems to have all 
her ends answered: 

To whom Michael spoke in this manner: Never judge 
of what is best by pleasure, though it may seem con- 
formable to Nature; seeing thou art created to a nobler 
end, holy and pure, and in conformity with God! those 
tents thou sawest; which appeared so pleasant, they 
were the tents of wickedness; in which his race shall 
dwell, who slew his brother; they appear studious of 
arts, that polish and adorn life; and are inventors of 
rare and curious things; unmindful of their Maker; 
though his spirit taught them, but tJiey acknowledge 
none of his gifts: yet they shall beget a beauteous off- 
spring; for that fair female troop thou sawest there, they 
that seemed like goddesses, so blithe, so smooth, and 



chap. in. PARADISE LOST. 407 

gay; are yet destitute of all good, wherein consists the 
domestic honour and chief praise of a woman; but these 
are bred up only and accomplished to the taste of sin- 
ful desire, and learn to dance, and dress, and lisp, and 
glance with their eyes. That sober race of men (whose 
religious lives make them be called the sons of God) 
shall ignobly yield up all their virtue, and all their 
fame, to the arts and smiles of these fair atheists; and 
now swim in joy and laugh, though judgment is near 
at hand, and all their laughing to be turned into tears! 

To whom Adam made answer, convinced of the false- 
ness of his joy on the sight of pleasure: O what a pity 
and shame! that they who live good lives, and begin so 
well, should turn aside to tread indirect paths, or faint 
by the way! but still I see the tenor of Man's misery 
holds on the same, and is to begin from Woman. 

It begins, said the angel, from the effeminate slack- 
ness of Man, who by wisdom, and the superior gifts 
he hath received, should hold his place better: but now 
prepare thyself for another sight. 

Adam looked, and saw a wide territory spread be- 
fore him; towns, and large countries between them; ci- 
ties with lofty gates and towers, full of inhabitants arm- 
ed and gathered together, with fierce faces threatening 
Avar: they were great giants, and fit for bold enterprises; 
part wielded their arms, and part curbed the war-horses; 
for there was both horse and foot, in a good rank and 
order of battle: one way a select band drove a herd of 
fair cattle from foraging in a fat meadow ground, or 
else a flock of sheep and lambs over the plain, which 
they had taken as their booty: the shepherds scarcely 
can escape with their lives; but when fled they call as- 
sistance, which makes a bloody fray. The squadrons 
join in battle; and now where the cattle lately grazed, 
the bloody and deserted field lies scattered with car- 
casses and arms. Others encamped lay siege to a strong 






4Q8 PARADISE LOST. book xl. 

city, assaulting it by battery, scaling, and mining: 
others defend it from the walls with darts, javelins, 
stones, and sulphurous fire; slaughter and war raging 
on every side. In the other part, the heralds call to 
council at the gates of the city; and presently assemble 
gray-headed and grave men mixed with warriors; and 
they make harangues: but faction soon makes opposi- 
tion; until at last one Enoch (n) rising up, of middle 
age, distinguished from the rest by his wise deportment, 
spoke much of right and wrong, of justice, religion, 
truth, peace, and judgment from above; both young and 
old exploded him, and had laid violent hands upon him, 
had not a cloud descended, and amidst the throng 
snatched him thence unseen: so violence and oppres- 
sion, and sword-law proceeded through all the plain, 
and there was no refuge to be found. Adam was all 
in tears to see it, and full of sad lamentation said thus 
to his guide: 

O! what are these? these are Death's ministers, not 
men! who thus inhumanly deal Death to men, and ten 
thousand fold multiply the sin of him who slew his bro- 
ther; for of whom do they make such general slaughter, 
but of their brethren; men of men? but who was that 
just Man, who, had not heaven rescued him, had been 
lost in and for his righteousness? 

To whom Michael replied thus: These are the pro- 
duct of those ill-mated marriages which thou sawest, 
where the good are matched with the bad; who of them- 
selves abhor to join; and being imprudently mixed, pro- 
duce prodigious births of body or mind. Such these 

(n) Enoch or Hanoch; Heb. i. e. dedicated. The son of Ja- 
red, and the seventh patriarch from Adam, born A.M. 622. He 
lived 365 years in the middle age of the world, between the cre- 
ation to the flood; and the middle age of men in those days; and 
was translated into Paradise, without tasting of death and mor- 
tality. 



chap. in. PARADISE LOST. 4,09 

giants shall be; men of exceeding high renown; for in 
those days, power only shall be admired, and called 
valour and heroic virtue: it shall be held the highest 
pitch of human glory to overcome in battle, and subdue 
nations, and bring home spoils with infinite manslaugh- 
ter; and this done only for the glory of triumph, to be 
styled great eonquerers and patrons of mankind, and be 
called gods and. sons of gods; when they much more 
properly might be called destroyers and the plagues of 
men. Thus fame and renown shall be achieved upon 
earth; and that which most deserves fame, shall be hid 
in silence. But he, the seventh from thee, whom thou 
beheldest the only righteous one in a perverse world; 
and therefore hated, therefore so surrounded with foes, 
for daring singly to be just, and utter disagreeable truth, 
a That Grod would come to judge them with his saints:" 
Him, the most High did, as thou sawest, take up to 
heaven; for he was carried suddenly away, to walk 
with Grod high in salvation and the regions of bliss, be- 
ing exempted from Death; to shew thee what reward 
attends the good, and to the evil what punishment; 
which now cast thy eyes forward, and thou shalt soon 
see: 

Adam looked, and saw the appearance of things 
quite changed: the trumpets, that sounded so loud in 
the battle, ceased; all was now turned to game and jol- 
lity, to luxury, riot, feast, and dance, marrying or pros- 
tituting, just as it happened; committing adultery, or 
even rapes, where any degree of beauty allured them: 
to these vices they added drunkenness, and contentious 
broils. At length there came a reverend sire among 
them, and declared great dislike of their wicked ac- 
tions, testifying against their ways; he often frequented 
their assemblies, going wheresoever they met, whether 
at triumphs or festivals; and preaching to them conver- 
sion and repentance, as to souls that were in bondage 

52 



410 PARADISE LOST. book xi. 

to sin, and under imminent judgment; but it was all in 
vain: which when he saw, he left off contending and 
removed his tents far off from theirs: then hewing tall 
trees on the mountains, he began to build a vessel of 
large bulk, measured by cubits, length, breadth, and 
height; smeared round with pitch; and in the side he 
contrived a door, and laid in a large store of provision, 
both for man and beast: when behold a strange won- 
der! there came every beast, and bird, and little insect, 
by sevens and pairs, and entered in, as taught their or- 
der; last the reverend sire and his wife, and his three 
sons with their wives entered in also; and God shut 
them in. Mean while the south wind arose, and blow- 
ing fiercely, drove together all the clouds from under 
heaven; the hills sent up to fill them vapours and moist 
exhalations: and now the thickened sky was all over- 
cast; the impetuous rain rushed down, and it continued 
raining until the earth was seen no more: the floating 
ark (o) swam upon the water, and securely floated over 

(o) The ark of Noah. It was the first ship in the world: God 
gave the form and measures, and Noah was the master builder 
of it; and from it men took the hint of navigation. It was made 
of cedar or Cyprus, which hath a bitter sap in it, therefore no 
worms touch it, and it doth not rot; for this very end, that it 
might be a lasting monument to future generations, both of their 
sin, punishment, and miraculous deliverance. Josephus and 
JSpiphanius affirm, that the remains of it were to be seen in their 
times, and that was about 3000 years after the building of it. 
In it Noah continued a whole year and 11 days. 4 In the six 
6 hundredth year of Noah's life, in the second month, the seven- 
4 teenth day of the month, the same day were all the fountains 
6 of the great deep broken up, and the windows of heaven were 
6 opened. And the rain was upon the earth forty days and forty 
6 nights. And in the second month, on the seven and twentieth 
4 day of the month, was the earth dried.' The clean beasts, or 
those that were appointed for sacrifices, went into the ark by 
sevens; that Noah might have wherewith to atone the Deity for 
his miraculous deliverance, which he did, Gen. viii. 20. ' And 



a»AP. in. PARADISE LOST. Mi 

the waves: all other dwellings the flood overwhelmed, 
and with them rolled all their pomp deep under the 
water, one wave following upon another: the sea was 
without shore, and the palaces, where luxury reigned 
lately, beeame the habitation of sea monsters; all that 
was left of mankind, lately so numerous, embarked in 
one small bottom. How then, Adam, didst thou grieve, 
to behold the end of all thy offspring, and so sad an 
universal dispeopling of the world! another flood of 
tears and sorrow drowned thee also, and sunk thee like 
thy sons; until gently raised up by the angel, thou at 
last stoodest upon thy feet, though comfortless; as when 
a father mourns for his children, which are destroyed 
all at once in his sight. He had scarce power to utter 
to the angel this complaint: 

What visions of ill do I foresee! how much better 
had it been for me, to have lived ignorant of what was 
to happen hereafter! so I had borne only my own part 
of evil, that" of each day being sufficient for the day; 
now all those that were distributed and divided, to be 
the burthen of so many ages, by my foreknowledge 
light at once upon me; gaining an untimely birth to 
torment me, before their being, with the thoughts that 
they must be. Henceforward, let no Man desire to be 
foretold what shall befall him or his children; for he 
may be assured before-hand, that it will be evil; which 
his foreknowing can in no wise prevent; and as for 
the future evil, he shall feel it, not 4 only actually, but 

i Noah builded an altar unto the Lord, and took of every clean 
6 beast, and of every clean fowl, and offered burnt offerings on 
' the altar.' Of the unclean sort there were only two, the male 
and the female, to preserve and propagate every species after- 
wards: for he made no use of the flesh of any of these; that was 
not granted until the flood was over, Gen. ix. 3, 4. < Every 
4 moving thing that liveth shall be meat for you; even as the 
< green herb have I given you all things: but flesh with the life 
c thereof, which is the blood thereof, shall you not eat,' 



ftl PARADISE LOST. book xi. 

full as much in apprehension; how grievous is that to 
bear! but that care is past now, there are no men to 
give warning to, those few who have escaped famine 
and anguish, will at last be lost, wandering upon the 
barren waters. I had conceived hope, that when vio- 
lence and war would have ceased upon earth, that then 
all would have gone well; that peace would have 
crowned the race of Man with length of happy days: 
but I find, that I was greatly deceived! for, now I per- 
ceive that peace corrupts as much as war wastes. Un- 
fold to me, thou who art a guide from heaven! how 
comes it, that these things are so? and tell me, whether 
the race of mankind will end here? 

To whom Michael made answer thus: Those, whom 
thou sawest last in triumph and luxurious wealth, are 
they who will first be seen in acts of eminent valour 
and great exploits, but will be destitute of true virtue; 
who have spilt much blood, and made a great devasta- 
tion in subduing nations, and having thereby obtained 
in the world fame, high titles, and rich prey; shall 
change the course of their lives to pleasure, ease, sur- 
feit, and lust, until wantonness and pride, even in time 
of peace, and among friends, shall cause strife, and 
hostile deeds. Those also, who are conquered, and 
enslaved by war, shall with their freedom lose all their 
virtue, and all fear of God; from whom (as they had 
but a pretended piety) they found no assistance in the 
sharp contest of battle against invaders; therefore 
grown cool in their zeal, they shall thenceforward 
practise how to live secure, either in a worldly or dis- 
solute manner, upon what their lords and conquerors 
shall leave them to enjoy: (for the earth shall bear 
much more than enough, for the trial of temperance) 
so, all shall turn degenerate, all shall be depraved, and 
justice, temperance, truth, and faith be forgot; except T 



chap. in. PARADISE LOST. 413 

ing Noah, (p) who shall be the only son of light in that 
dark age; he will be good against all bad example, 
against all allurements, customs, and an offended 
world: not standing in fear of reproach, scorn, or vio- 
lence, he shall admonish them of their ways, and set 
before them the paths of righteousness, shewing how 
much more safe they are, and full of peace; threaten- 
ing wrath to come, if they should remain impenitent; 
and for this teaching he shall be derided by them. But 
the only just Man alive, being observed by God, shall 
by his command build a wonderous ark (as thou hast 
beheld) to save himself and his household, from a 
world devoted to universal ruin. No sooner shall he, 
witli those of mankind, and all living creatures selected 
to preserve the kind, be lodged in the ark, and shut 
in fast; but all the cataracts of heaven shall be set 
open, and pour rain day and night upon the earth; all 
the fountains of the deep shall be broke up, and heave 
the ocean beyond all its former bounds; until an inun- 
dation rise above the highest hills. Then this mount 
of Paradise, by the power of the waves shall be moved 
out of its place, by the violence of the raging flood, 
with all its verdures spoiled, and all its trees adrift down 
the great river to the main ocean; and there take root, 
and be a bare and salt island, be the haunt of fish, and 
be filled with the noise of water fowls; to teach thee, 
that God attributes no holiness to place, if none be 
brought thither by men, who frequent or dwell in it. 
And now behold what there is further to come to pass. 
Adam looked and saw the ark floating to and fro 
upon the flood, which was now abated; for the clouds 

(p) Noah, or JSPoach; Heb. i. e. a rest. Names were given 
men in those days, by divine inspiration: his name was a pro- 
phecy of Lameeh's that that child should give rest and comfort 
to the new world, and reconcile God to man. Noe (whom the 
Tartars call Nui) was born A.M. 1056, and lived 950 years. 
Noah is the Ogyges, Deucalion, and Saturn of the heathens. 



414 PARADISE LOST. book xi. 

were fled away, driven by a keen north wind, that 
blowing hard and dry, began to lessen the bulk of the 
waters, and the clear sun shone hot upon the wide 
watery deluge (q) and drew up considerably from the 
waves; which made their flowing shrink, and they 
ebbed softly towards the deep; whose sluices were now 
stopped, and the windows of heaven shut also. The 
ark now floats no longer, but seems on the ground, 
fixed fast on the top of some high mountain: (r) now 
the tops of the hills began to appear, like rocks; from 
whence the rapid currents drove their furious tide, with 
great noise and violence, towards the retreating sea. 
Forthwith a raven (s) flies out of the ark, and after 
him (what proved a surer messenger) a dove, sent forth 
twice, to see if she could find green tree or ground, 
whereon to set her foot; returning the second time, she 
brings an olive leaf plucked off in her mouth, which 

(q) Deluge; Lat. i. e. washing or sweeping away; an inun- 
dation or overflowing of the earth with water. There have 
been several deluges in different countries: this was the first, an 
universal one, and the most famous in history: it was in the 600th 
year of Noah, A.M. 1656. The second was that of Ogyges 
king of Thebes, which laid all Attica under water, A.M. 2185, 
or 2208, 1020 years before the first Olympiad, and in the days 
of Jacob. The third was that of Deucalion, about 15 years be- 
fore the children of Israel departed out of Egypt. There was 
a violent one at Pekin, A.D. 1688. 

(r) Mountain. This is called Ararat in Armenia, Gen. viii. 4. 
Some call it Lubar, others Baris; some the Caiaygean, Gerdy-, 
£ean, Godoehian, and others the Carduchian mountains. 

(s) Raven. A rapacious and unclean bird, Deut. xiv. 14. 
She was sent out first on the 17th day of August, and on the first 
day of the week, and 40 days after the tops of the mountains ap- 
peared, but did not return; because she is a ravenous creature, 
and settles upon carcasses, or any dirty grounds, which the 
dove doth not; and therefore she went away upon prey, but 
this returned to the ark: she went out of the ark on the 24th of 
August, and the first day of the week. 



eHAP. in. PARADISE LOST. 415 

was a sign of peace between God and Noah. After a 
while the dry ground appears, and the ancient just 
Man descends from his ark with all his train: then, 
with hands lifted up, and with devout eyes grateful to 
heaven, behold over his head a dewy cloud, and in the 
cloud the distinct appearance of a bow, of three co- 
lours variously intermixed, betokening peace with God, 
and a new covenant made with Man; whereat the heart 
of Adam, which before had been so sad, rejoiced great- 
ly, and thus he joyfully cried out: 

Heavenly instructor! who canst represent future 
things, as clear as if they were present; this last sight 
revives me, seeing that it assures me, that Man with 
all the creatures shall live and preserve their seed. I 
do not lament now for one whole world of wicked sons 
being destroyed, so much as I rejoice to see one Man 
so perfect and so just, that God vouchsafes from him 
to raise another world, and to forget all his anger. But 
tell me, what mean those coloured streaks, that are 
stretched out in heaven, and look like the brow of God 
appeased? or do they serve as a flowery edge, to bind 
the fluid skirts of that same watery cloud, lest it should 
dissolve and shower down upon the earth? 

To whom the archangel made answer: What thou 
hast guessed is very near to the purpose; so willingly 
doth God remit his anger, though so lately he repented 
that he had made Man, seeing he was become so much 
depraved; being grieved at his heart, when looking down 
he saw the whole earth filled with violence, and all 
flesh corrupt in the imagination of their thoughts: yet 
those once removed, one just Man shall find such grace 
in his sight, that he relents, and determines not to blot 
out mankind, and makes a covenant, that the waters 
shall never become a flood, to destroy the earth again, 
nor ever to let the sea surpass its bounds, nor rain to 
fall so as to drown the world, with Man or beast there- 



416 PARADISE LOST. book xi. 

in: but when he brings a cloud over the earth, he will 
set his bow in the cloud s, and it shall be for a token 
of a covenant between Grod and the earth; day and 
night, heat and cold, seed time and harvest, shall hold 
their course, and not cease; until the general confla- 
gration purge and purify both heaven and earth, where- 
in thenceforward the just shall dwell for ever. 



THE TWELFTH BOOK 



OF 



PARADISE LOST. 



THE ARGUMENT. 

The angel Michael continues from the flood to relate what 
shall succeed; then, in the mention of Abraham, comes by de- 
grees to explain, who that seed of the woman shall be, which 
was promised Adam and Eve in the fall: his incarnation, 
death, resurrection, and ascension: the state of the church 
until his second coming. Adam greatly satisfied and recom- 
forted by those relations and promises, descends the hill with 
Michael; wakens Eve, who all this while had slept, but with 
gentle dreams composed to quietness of mind and submission. 
Michael in either hand leads them out of Paradise, the fiery 
sword waving behind them, and the cherubim taking their 
stations to guard the place. 



CHAPTER I. 

The angel relates what shall happen after the flood, and foretells 
the coming of Christ. 

As a traveller upon a journey takes some rest at 
noon, though he be intent on expedition; so here the 
archangel Michael made a pause, betwixt the world 
destroyed and the world restored, to see whether or no 
Adam might not have some questions to interpose; then 
going forward in his narration, he began again to speak. 

Thus, Adam, thou hast seen the beginning and end 
of the world, and Man proceeding as from a second 
stock: there yet remains a great deal more for thee to 
see; but I perceive that thy mortal sight begins to fail 
thee; nor can it be otherwise, for divine objects must 
needs impair and weary the human senses: so that what 
is to come henceforward, I shall only relate to thee; 
do thou therefore be attentive, and give proper audi- 
ence to what I shall say! 

This new race of men, before they arrive to large 
numbers, and while the dread of past judgment remains 
fresh in their minds, shall lead their lives in the fear 
of God, with some regard to justice and what is right; 
and they shall multiply apace, manuring and sowing 
the earth, and reaping plentiful crops of corn, wine, 
and oil; and often from the herds or flocks making sa- 
crifices of bullocks, lambs, or kids, with large offer- 
ings of wine poured out, shall spend their days in joy 
and sacred festival, unblamed; and dwell for a long 



420 PARADISE LOST. book xh. 

time in peace, by families and tribes, under paternal 
rule; until one called Nimrod (a) shall arise, of proud 
and ambitious heart; who not content with a fair and 
equal share, will assume an undeserved dominion over 
the rest of his brethren, and quite dispossess concord 
and the law of nature from the earth; hunting wild 
beasts, and not only wild beasts, but men also; sub- 
duing with war, and laying hostile snares for such as 
refuse subjection to his tyrannical usurpation: for that 
reason he shall be called a mighty hunter before the 
Lord; meaning either in despite of heaven, or else 
claiming from heaven the second sovereignty; and 
though he shall accuse others of rebellion, yet from 
rebellion he shall derive his name, for such is the mean- 
ing of the word Nimrod. He, with a crew joined to 
him by like ambition, or design of tyrannizing under 
him, marching from Eden towards the west, shall find 
the plains, in which a black bituminous slime boils out 
from under the ground, as if it were the mouth of hell. 
Of that stuff, and bricks, they contrive to build a city, 
and a tower whose top may reach to heaven; thinking 
thereby to get themselves a name; lest, being dispersed 
far away in foreign lands, the memory of them should 
be lost; not regarding, whether the fame they acquired 
was good pr evil. But Gfod, who oftentimes descends 

(a) Nimrod or Beliis; l^oaji's great grandson, the father of 
Ninus, who first usurped over the patriarchs, and first took 
up arms against the wild beasts, which were then very nume- 
rous, powerful, and mischievous; then he made himself the 
head of his companions; then the king over all the rest, about 
Ji.M. 1720. Nimrod; Heb. i. e. a rebel: for he rebelled 
against God ? in building the tower of Babel; and against men, 
in usurping monarchical government, and overturning the pa- 
triarchal. He is Belus among the heathens, the founder of the 
Assyrian monarchy, the first instance of idolatry; and was the 
Bel or Baal (Heb. i. e. lord) of the Assyrians, Babylonians, and 
all the world. 



chap. i. PARADISE LOST. 4&1 

unseen to visit men, and passes among their habitations 
to take notice of their actions, soon beholding them, 
comes down to see their city, long before the tower 
reached up to heaven; and, in derision, confounded 
their native language, the Hebrew, (b) and instead 
thereof, gave them only power to make a jangling noise 
of words, not understood by one another. Forthwith 
a loud and confused talking rises among the builders, 
each call to the other, and nobody understands; until 
hoarse and all in a rage, they storm, thinking them- 
selves mocked by each other: the angels in heaven 
looking down, held them in great derision, to see the 
strange hubbub, and hear the din. Thus this ridicu- 
lous building, which they foolishly thought might reach 
heaven, was left; and the work called Babel; which 
being interpreted signifies confusion. 

Whereto Adam, displeased at what he saw his off- 
spring do, exclaimed thus: O execrable son! to aspire 
so above his brethren; assuming to himself an usurped 
authority, not given him from God: he only gave us an 
absolute dominion over beast, fish, and fowl; that right 
we hold by his donation: but he never made Man lord 
over men; that title he hath reserved to himself only; 
for God left human race free from human dominion. 
But, this tyrant and usurper stops not his ambitious 
usurpation upon Man only; he also intended his new 
tower, to be a siege against the God of heaven. Wretch- 
ed and mistaken Man! what food will he convey up 
thither, to sustain himself and his rash army? where 

(&) Hebrew, the natural speech of mankind, from the creation 
for 1757 years; seeing all languages derive many words from 
that, but it from none of them; the names of men and things 
plainly confirm it, aad the learned agree in it. After the con- 
fusion of tongues it remained in Ileber's family, and so descend- 
ed to the Jews, among whom it continued pure to the Babylonish 
captivity; in all about 3400 years. 



422 PARADISE LOST. book xii. 

the thin air above the clouds will consume his gross 
entrails; and if he were provided with bread, he must 
die, it being too fine for him to breathe in? 

To whom Michael replied thus: Thou hast a just 
abhorrence of that son, who brought such great trouble 
upon the quiet state of Man, affecting to subdue rea- 
sonable liberty; yet learn at the same time, that since 
true liberty is lost, by reason of original sin (and li- 
berty always is paired with right reason, and divided 
from it can have no being) reason in Man being ob- 
scured, or not obeyed, immediately inordinate desires 
and sudden passions catch the government from it, and 
reduce the whole Man to servitude, who until then was 
free. Therefore, since he permits unworthy powers 
to reign over free reason within himself; God in just 
judgment, subjects it from without to violent lords, 
who oftentimes as undeservedly enthral his outward 
freedom. So that there must be such a thing as ty- 
ranny; though that cannot serve for any excuse to him 
who is a tyrant; yet sometimes nations will decline so 
low from virtue (which too is reason) that no wrongs, 
but justice and some fatal curse, deprives them of their 
outward liberty, their inward being lost by themselves; 
witness Ham (c) the irreverent son of Noah, who 
built the ark; who, for the shame done to his father, 
had this curse pronounced on him and his vicious race; 
" A servant of servants shall he be unto his brethren." 
Thus will this latter world, as the former did, go on 
from bad to worse; until at last (rod, wearied with their 
iniquities, will draw his presence from among them, 
and turn his holiness away from them; from thenceforth 
resolved, to leave them to their own polluted ways, 

(c) Ham, the youngest son of Noah, who was cursed for his 
disrespect and contempt of his father, Gen. ix. 24, 25. The 
old Carthaginians, Grecians, and Romans, and all the nations 
of Europe, made slaves of the Africans. 



chap. i. PARADISE LOST. 423 

and to select one peculiar nation from all the rest to be 
adored by; a nation to spring from one faithful Man; that 
is to say, from Abraham, (d) yet residing on this side 
the river Euphrates, and bred up to worship idols. — 
Canst thou believe it possible? O that men should be 
grown so stupid and senseless, while yet the patriarch 
Noah, lived, who escaped the flood, as to forsake the 
living God, and fall down to worship their own works 
in wood and stone, and call them gods! yet the most 
high God vouchsafes to call him by vision from his 
father's house, and from his kindred and false gods, 
into a land which he will shew him; and from him will 
raise a mighty nation, and upon him shower his bene- 
diction so, that in his seed all nations shall be blessed: 
he straight obeys God's call and promises; firmly be- 
lieving in them, though he did not know to what land 
he was to go. I see him (but I know thou canst not) 
with what faith he leaves his gods, all his friends, and 
native country, which is Ur (e) of Chaldaea; (/) now 

(d) Abraham. God called him from among the idolatrous 
ChaldseaTis, about the year of the world 2083. 

(e) Ur; Heb. i. e. light; because the Chaldseans worshipped 
the sun or fire. A city of Chaldsea, where Abraham was born, 
about 624 miles from Jerusalem eastward; now Orchsea and 
Horrea. This was the first sort of idolatry, called Sebaism, 
Gr. from the Heb. i. e. worshipping the hosts of heaven; for 
Dsemonolatria, Gr. i. e. worshipping daemons, heroes, beasts, 
images, &c. came in long afterwards. 

(/) Chaldcea; Gr. from the Heb. i. e. like daemons, destroy- 
ers, robbers: in scripture it is called Chased, and the people 
Chasdin, from Kesed, the son of Nahor, which the Greeks turn- 
ed into Chakkea. Also Shinar, Heb. i. e. scattered; because 
the builders of that tower were scattered over the whole earth, 
Gen. x. 10, 11. 28. and now Chaldar and Curdistan. Chaldsea 
is a large country of Asia, bordering upon Assyria, Mesopota- 
mia, between the Euphrates and Tigris, whereof Babylon was 
the metropolis for many ages; therefore that country was called 
Babylonia. 



4&4< PARADISE LOST. book xh. 

passing the river Euphrates to Haran; (g) and after 
him a numerous train of herds and flocks, and abun- 
dance of servants; not wandering poorly without his 
substance, but trusting all his wealth with God, who 
called him to an unknown land. Now he comes to 
Canaan; (li) I see his tents pitched all about Sichem, 
(i) and the neighbouring plain Moreh (k). There he 

(g) Haran or Charran; Heb. i. e. anger or wrath; from Ha- 
ran, the father of Lot. It is a country and chief city of Meso- 
potamia, upon a river of the same name, not far from Uz, 440 
miles from Jerusalem north-eastward. There Abraham lived 
some years; the Turks pay a great veneration to it on that ac- 
count, and now call it Keren or Charron, x\cts vii. 4. There 
the great Crassus, the Roman general and consul, with his ar- 
my of 3000 men, was overthrown by the Parthians, who took it: 
afterwards the Persians took it, now the Turks possess it. It is 
eleven day's journey, or 232 miles westward from Niniveh, now 
well inhabited, has a good trade, and is also called Ophra. 
There is a well of clear water, at which Rebecca gave drink 
to Eleazar, Abraham's servant, Gen. xxiv. 19. They call it 
Abraham's well. But Mesopotamia is now rendered very de- 
sert and ruinous by the Turks. 

(h) Canaan; Heb. i, e. a merchant, from Canaan the son of 
Ham; by whom it was first peopled, Gen. xi. 18. because it lies 
along the Mediterranean sea, and gave the inhabitants an op- 
portunity of trade, merchandise, and navigation, over the whole 
earth. Such were the old Phoenicians, Tyrians, Sidonians, 
Carthaginians, Sfc. 

(i) Sichem; Heb. i. e. a shoulder or back; because it standeth 
out like one; or from Sichem, the father of Hamor or Emmor, 
Gen. xxxiv. 2. Acts vii. 16. Also Sychar; Heb. i. e. hired or 
wages, John iv. 5. and afterwards Scythopolis; see Judith iii. 
14, Gr. i. e. the city of the Scythians or Tartars; because some 
of them settled there. An ancient city of Samaria in Pales- 
tine, between mount Gerizim and mount Ebal, belonging to Sa- 
maria, 36 miles from Jerusalem northward. There Joseph 
was buried, Joshua xxiv. 32. Abimelech razed it, Judges ix. 
45. But Jeroboam rebuilt it, 1 Kings xii. Now it is called 
Naplosa, Gr. i. e. the new town; but it is in & very low condi- 
tion at this time. 



chap. i. PARADISE LOST. 425 

receives a promise, that all that laud should be given 
to his posterity, northward from Hamath, (I) to the de- 
sert south of Arabia; (I call things by their naines, 
though as yet they are not named) and east from Her- 
mon (m) to the Mediterranean sea: mount Hermon that 
lies there! and yonder sea! (look at each place in pros- 
pect, as I point to them) upon the shore there is mount 

(k) Moreh; Heb. i. e. the lordship of the lord: or from Mo- 
reh, one of the old Amorites, who possessed it, Gen. xiii. 18. 
xiv. 13. a piece of ground near Sichem, where Abraham first 
settled in Canaan, which Jacob bought of Hamor for 100 pieces 
of money, and gave to Joseph, Gen. xxxiii. 19. xlviii. 22. John 
iv. 5. 

(1) Hamath, Hemath, or Chamath; Heb. i. e. heat or anger; 
from Hamath the son of Canaan, who built it. A city in the north 
of Canaan belonging to Syria, between two hills, near the river 
Orontes, at the foot of iVnti-Libanus,280 miles from Jerusalem: 
the utmost bounds of the Holy Land on the north, and one of 
the grand passes of it, called also Zin, Numbers xxxiv. 8. Jo- 
shua xiii. 5. Now the Turks call it Hems. There is a great 
Hamath and a little Hamath, Amos vi. 2. Some take it to be 
the ancient Apameea; others on better grounds, for Epipha- 
nia or Antiochia. In the Targum it is called Antiochia, from 
Antiochus king of Syria. Toi was king of it in the reign of 
king David, 2 Sam. viii. 9. In the 13th century it had princes 
of its own, which were of the race of Ayub or Job, from whom 
descended Saladin, a sultan of the Turks, who conquered Pales- 
tine, Egypt, Syria, <J*c. Jl.D. 1180. Hamath was a city of great 
trade, but is now very much decayed. 

(»i) Hermon, or Chermon; Heb. i. e. snow. A high and fer- 
tile mountain in the north of Canaan, near mount Lebanon, be- 
yond Jordan to the north-east, 122 miles from Jerusalem, and 
frequently covered with snow, because it is very high. It is 
called Shirjon by the Sidonians, Psalm xxix. 6. Sheniz, by the 
Amorites, Deut. iii. 9. Also Sion (not Tzion at Jerusalem) 
Deut. iv. 48. and also Baal-Hermon, Heb. i. e. Hermon the Great; 
to distinguish it from a lesser of that name, near mount Gilboa 
and mount Tabor, in the tribe of Manasses, 44 miles from Je- 
rusalem towards the north. At the foot of it stood the city Nain, 
Heb. i. e. pleasant; because it stood most pleasantly on the banks 
04 



436 PARADISE LOST. book xii. 

Carmel; (n) here the river Jordan, springing from two 
fountains, is the boundary of Canaan on the east side; 
but Abraham's sons shall dwell as far as Seir, (0) which 
is all that long ridge of hills! now consider this well, 
that all the nations of the earth shall be blessed in his 
seed: by that seed, thy great deliverer is meant, who 
shall bruise the head of the serpent; about which, be- 
fore I depart, I shall reveal more to thee. This blest 
patriarch (who, by reason of his obedience, shall be 
called faithful Abraham) (j)) leaves a son called Isaac: 

of the river Chison. Upon this mountain grew many good 
trees; wild beasts also abounded upon it, Ezek. xxvii. 5. 

(n) Carmel; Heb. i. e. a vineyard; beeause there are many 
vineyards upon it. Another very high mountain in the Holy 
Land, upon the Mediterranean sea, to the south of Ptolemais, 
50 miles north-west from Jerusalem, in the tribe of Issaehar. 
Here the prophet Elijah began his reformation of religion, in 
the days of Ahab, a very idolatrous and impious king of Israel,. 
1 Kings xviii. Here Samuel, Elijah, Elisha, and other prophets, 
and also Pythagoras, the heathen philosopher, long afterwards 
resorted: for the sake of devotion, contemplation, and retire- 
ment. The ancient river Kyson cuts its way close by the west 
side of it, through the plains of Esclraelion into the sea at a 
place called Caypha. Upon this mountain is a convent of bare- 
footed friars, called Carmelites, a little mosque, with several 
gardens and vineyards. 

(0) Seir, Senir, or Saner; Heb. i. e. rough. A long and 
large ridge of mountains with many tracts of fertile land, which 
made the kingdom of the Edomites, on the south side of the 
Dead sea and Canaan, about 46 miles from Jerusalem. It is a 
rocky country; therefore it is called Trachonites, Syr. Chald- 
i. e. rocky, rough; Iturea, Heb. i. e. mountainous, from Jetur, a 
son of Ismael; Petrwa, Syr. i. e. rocky; and Idumea, Heb. i. e. 
red, from Esau or Edom; because he and his sons did settle in 
it: but it was called Seir long before that. 

(p) Abraham; his first name was Abram, Heb. i. e. an excel- 
lent or mighty father; hut when God renewed his covenant, he 
changed that into Abraham, i. e. an excellent or mighty father 
of many people. Abraham was the founder of the Jewish na- 



chap. i. PARADISE LOST. 4&7 

and of him a grandchild, called Jacob, (q) very much 
like him in faith, wisdom, and renown. The grand- 
child, having twelve sons, departs from Canaan to a 
land, which will afterwards be called Egypt, divided 
by the river Nile: see there where it flows, disgorging 
itself at seven mouths into the sea! he comes to live in 
that land, being thither invited by a younger son in a 
time of famine; (call him Joseph) a son, whose worthy 
deeds raise him to be the next in dignity to Pharoah 
in that kingdom: there he dies, and leaves his race 
growing into a nation; and being thought too powerful, 
by another king who succeeded to the throne of that 
kingdom, some years after the death of Joseph, he 

tion and church, esteemed a mighty prince among the Canaan- 
ites, a great prophet at Pharaoh's court. The kings of Egypt, 
Palestine, 8fc. courted his friendship, made leagues with 
him, and paid him homage. Nieol. Damascenus, Justin, Sfc. say, 
that he was king of Damascus; his name was had in veneration 
among both Jews, Gentiles, Muhammedans, and Christians, in 
all ages: they made religious pilgrimages to his oak atMamre, 
until Constantine the Great ordered it to he destroyed; and 
which is more, he was called the father of the faithful, and the 
friend of God; a title of honour never bestowed on any man be- 
fore. He carried the knowledge of astronomy, arithmetic, and 
other sciences, from Chaldeea into Egypt, as Josephus relates: 
but geometry was first found out in Egypt, from the overflow- 
ing of the Nile. He was born A.M. 1948, and lived ±75 years. 
(q) Jacob increased wonderfully; for of 70 souls which went 
with him into Egypt, in the space of 215 years they increased 
to 600,000 armed men, besides women, children, and old men 
unfit for war. At the first numbering of them, in the first year 
after they went out of Egypt, they were 60^,550, Exodus xxx. 
11, 12. xxxviii. 25, 26. In the second year their number was 
the same, although the tribe of Levi was not included, Numb. 
i. 46. In David's time Joab mustered a thousand thousand, and 
a hundred thousand men of Israel; and four hundred thousand 
threescore and ten thousand men of Judah, that were soldiers, 
1 Chron. xxi. 5. And Josephus reckons three millions of men 
at Jerusalem, assembled at the passover. 



428 PARADISE LOST. book xn. 

sought to stop the growth of their numbers, looking 
upon them as too numerous a people to share the land 
with them: whence he, inhospitably, of guests made 
them slaves; and ordered the midwives of Egypt, to 
kill all the Hebrew male infants; until by two brethren, 
(call those two brethren Moses (r) and Aaron) who 
shall be sent from God, to demand his people to be 
delivered from bondage: they return back again to 
their promised land, with glory and spoils. But first 
the lawless tyrant (who denies to know any thing of 
their God, or give any regard to their message) must 
be compelled to }&i them go, by signs and great plagues: 
the rivers, and ponds, and pools of water, must all be 
turned to blood; his palace must be tilled at different 
times with frogs, and lice, and flies, which will be 
loathsomely scattered all over the land: there must be 
a grievous murrain; his cattle must die of the rot, and 
blotches and blains must disfigure all his flesh, and the 
flesh of all his people: then thunder, and haiL, and fire, 
running along upon the ground very grievous, such as 
there was none like it in Egypt since it became a na~ 

(r) Moses, Mosheh, and Moyses, Heb, i. e. drawn out of the 
water: see Exod. ii. 10. Josephus makes it an Egyptian word 
from Moy, i. e. the water: but we know not what name his pa- 
rents gave him at Ms circumcision, unless we give into the fa- 
bles of the Jews, who say it was Joachim, Jechotiel, Chabar, 
Sfc. Vide Huet. Dem. Evang. p. 120. Moses was the youngest 
son of Am ram and Jokebed, of the tribe of Levi, born in Egypt, 
A.M. 22'7 3. The grand prophet and lawgiver of the Jews, and 
celebrated by the wisest and best of the ancient heathens, as being 
the first and greatest philosopher, poet, and lawgiver in the world; 
for he was 500 years before Homer, 800 before Thales, 900 before 
Pythagoras, 1100 before Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle; and from 
him they extracted all the best parts of their philosophy, policy, 
history, religion, and laws. He died on mount Nebo in the land 
of Moab, at 120 years of age, upon the 7th day of the month, 
on which he was born, A.M. 2493. 



chap. i. PARADISE LOST. 429 

tion; and it smote both Man and beast, and every herb 
of the field, and broke every tree. What that does not 
devour, either herb, or fruit, or grain, a darksome cloud 
of loeusts (such as had never been before, nor never 
will be again) must eat, and leave nothing green upon 
the ground. A thick darkness must overshadow all 
his kingdom; such darkness as may be felt, and endure 
for three days; so that they neither saw one another, 
nor any rose from their place: and lastly, with one 
stroke at midnight, all the first-born of Egypt, from 
the king to the meanest servant, must be laid dead; 
and even the first-born of beasts. Thus Pharoah, the 
king of Egypt, at length tamed with these ten plagues, 
submits to let the children of Israel depart; and often 
humbles his stubborn heart: but still it was like ice, 
that will freeze the harder after it has been thawed: 
until pursuing in his rage those he had so lately dis- 
missed, the sea swallows him up, with all his army; 
but lets the children of Israel pass as upon dry land; 
and the waters were a wall unto them, on their right 
hand and on their left, which stood so divided on Mo- 
ses's stretching his rod over the sea; until such time 
as those he had to rescue were got on shore, (s) through 
the Hed sea. Such wonderous power God will lend 
to holy Moses, though his angel will be there in pre- 

(s) Shore: Sax. Dut. A geographical term. This shore 
was on the Egyptian ground. The people did not go directly 
across the Red sea from shore to shore, according to the vulgar 
opinion; but took a circular compass in that sea, and came out 
on the same side; the sea there is about seven leagues over. 
The Israelites went out of the wilderness of Etham in Egypt, 
and came out of it upon the very same side; they travelled three 
days in the same wilderness: then they marched northward to the 
isthmus of Sues, a tract of dry land between the Red sea and 
the Mediterranean sea, which is eighteen leagues broad; and 
there they travelled out of Egypt, as others do, into the wilder- 
ness of Arabia; where they abode forty yearg. 



4*30 PARADISE LOST. book xir. 

sence; who shall go before the camp of Israel, in a 
cloud and a pillar of lire; and remove and go behind 
them, by day a cloud, and by night a pillar of fire, to 
guide them in their journey, while Pharaoh pursues 
them. He will pursue them all night, but God will 
interpose darkness between him and them until morn- 
ing; then looking through the fiery pillar and the cloud, 
God will trouble the army of these Egyptians, and ren- 
der all their-cnariots unlit for use: when Moses, by 
command, extends his powerful rod once more over 
the sea; the sea obeys his rod, the waves return to their 
place that stood divided, and overwhelmed all the host 
of Pharaoh: the chosen people of God advance on, 
through the wild desert, towards Canaan; not the near- 
est way, lest entering on the country of the Canaanites, 
it might alarm them, and they be obliged to enter into 
war, being quite undisciplined, and fear might make 
them return back to Egypt, choosing inglorious life 
with slavery, rather than death: (for life is more sweet 
to the noblest minds, spent in peace, than in war; ex- 
cept, where rashness pushes forwards,) This also they 
shall gain by their stay in the wilderness; that there 
they shall lay the foundations of their government, and 
choose their great senate, (t) through the twelve tribes, 

(t) Senate; Fr, Ital. Span. Lat. A council of old men. The 
Lacedemonians called them Gerontes, Gr. i. e. old men or sena- 
tors; they were always chosen for this office, because of their 
greater experience and prudence. We find them mentioned in 
the early days of Job. Such only were elected in the Areopa^ 
gns or grand council of Athens, Sparta, Rome, and all other 
polite nations. The Jewish council was first instituted by the 
advice of Jethro, Moses's father-in-law, Exodus xviii. 25, 26.; 
and afterwards erected into the number of seventy -two elders, 
i. e. six men out of every tribe, by divine institution; and Mo- 
ses was the prince or head of them, Numb. xi. 18. It was call- 
ed Beth-dan, i. e. the house of judgment, and Sanhedrim or San- 
hedrin, contracted from the Greek Synedrion, i. e. a synod or 
assembly. 



chap, i. PARADISE LOST. 431 

to rule according to the laws which God ordained. God, 
descending from the mountain of Sinai (which shall 
tremble at his presence) will himself ordain them laws, 
with thunder, lightning, and the loud sound of a trum- 
pet: part, such as appertain to civil justice; part, reli- 
gious rites of sacrifice; teaching them, by types and 
shadows of that seed which was decreed to bruise the 
serpent, by what means he shall bring the deliverance 
of mankind to pass. But the voice of God is dreadful 
to the ears of men; they beseech, that Moses might re- 
port his will to them, and that terror might cease: he 
grants them their desire; they being instructed, that 
there is no aceess to God without a mediator, whose 
high office now Moses bears in a figurative sense, 
to introduce one greater, of whose day he shall foretell, 
and all the prophets in their age shall prophecy of the 
times of the great Messiah. Thus laws and rights be- 
ing established, God takes such delight in men, obe- 
dient to his will, that he vouchsafes to set up his ta- 
bernacle among them, and (though the holy and ever- 
lasting God) to dwell with mortal men. By his ordi- 
nance is built a sanctuary of cedar, overlaid with gold; 
and in that an ark, or little chest; and in that his testi- 
mony, the records of his covenant with his people: over 
these a mercy-seat of gold, between the wings of two 
bright cherubim: before him burn seven lamps, as in a 
zodiac, whose number is to represent the seven plan- 
ets: over the tent a cloud shall rest by day, and a gleam 
of fire by night, except when they travel; for then the 
cloud shall be taken up from over the tabernacle; until 
at length they come, conducted by the angel of God, to 

the land promised to Abraham and his seed. —The 

rest were long to tell, how many battles fought, how 
many kings destroyed, and how many kingdoms won; 
or how the sun shall stand still in the midst of heaven 
a whole day, and put off the due course of the night. 



433 PARADISE LOST. book xii. 

at the command and voice of a Man; i Sun! stand thou 
still upon Gibeon, (n) and thou moon! in the valley of 
Ajalon, (a?) until Israel overcome:' so call Isaac's (y) 
son, the third from Abraham; and from him his whole 
descent, who thus shall win Canaan, shall be called 
Israel, or Israelites. 

Here Adam interposed, and said to the archangel: 
Gracious things thou hast revealed to me, thou enlighten- 
er of my darkness, who art sent from heaven! and chief- 
ly hast informed me of those, which concern just Abra- 
ham and his seed: now I first find my eyes truly open- 
ing, and my heart a great deal eased, which was once 
much perplexed with thoughts of what would become 
of me and all mankind: but now I see his day, in whom 
all the nations of the earth shall be blessed; a favour 
unmerited by me, who, by forbidden means, sought af- 
ter forbidden knowledge: yet this I cannot comprehend, 
why to those, among whom God will deign to dwell 

(u) Gibeon; Heb. i. e. a hill; because it stood on an eminence. 
The chief city of the Gibeonites, two leagues north-west from 
Jerusalem, Joshua x. 2. After the conquest, it was given to 
the priests. 

(x) Ajalon, or Helton; Heb. i. e. an oak, a hind, or strength; 
because it was a strong city. It belonged to the Philistines, in 
the tribe of Dan, four miles from Jerusalem to the south-east: 
near it this miracle was wrought by Joshua. It was given to 
the Levites. See Joshua x. 12. 

(y) Isaac; Heb. i.e. laughter; because his father andmother 
laughed at the strangeness of the promise of a son, when his 
father was 100, and she was 90 years of age, Gen. xviii. 12. 13. 
He was the only son of Abraham by Sarah, and heir of the di- 
vine promise. God commanded him to offer him in a burnt-of- 
fering, but an angel rescued him, and he offered a ram in his 
stead, &c. Isaac was born A.M. 2048, died A.M. 2228, being 
180 years old. Seven men were predicted and called by their 
names, before they were born, viz. Ishmael, Isaac, Samson, Jo- 
siah, Cyrus, John the Baptist, and Jesus Christ. To these St. 
Jerom adds Solomon, from 1 Chron. xxii. 8, 9, 



ohap. i. PARADISE LOST. 433 

here upon earth, are given so many and various laws; 
for so many laws argue, that there are so many sins 
among them: how can God reside with such? 

To whom Michael made this reply: doubt not, but 
that sin will find place among them, as being begotten 
of thee; and therefore was law given them, to make their 
natural depravity appear, by stirring up sin to fight 
against law; that when they see that law can discover 
sin, but not remove it (except by those shadowy and 
weak expiations, the blood of bulls and goats) they 
may conclude, that some blood more precious must be 
paid for Man; the, just for the unjust: that in such righ- 
teousness, imputed to them by faith, they may find jus- 
tification towards God, and peace of conscience; which 
the law by ceremonies cannot appease, nor Man per- 
form the moral part; and not performing it, cannot live: 
so that law appears imperfect, and is only given, with 
a purpose to resign them, in the fulness of time, up to 
a better covenant; being led from the shadow of types 
to truth: from flesh to spirit; from the imposition of strict 
laws, to free acceptance of large grace; from servile 
fear, to filial fear; from works of law, to works of faith. 
And therefore Moses, though highly beloved of God, 
shall not (being but the minister of law) lead his peo- 
ple into the land of Canaan; but Joshua, {%) whom the 

(z) Joshua, or Jehoshua; Heb. i. e. a saviour of the Lord, He 
was first called Hoshea and Jesus, but all from the same Hebrew 
root. The son of Nun, and successor of Moses, and grand ge- 
neral of Israel: he vanquished the Canaanites, and distributed 
their land among the twelve tribes. He was born in Egypt, A. 
M. 2404, 92 years after the death of Joseph; was their general 
about 18 years, conquered 31 kings, put the Israelites in peace- 
able possession, in six years time, and died aged 110 years. The 
Phoenicians called him Hercules, i. e. the glory of heroes; be- 
cause of his many wonderful victories over them. The Jews, 
from the first entrance into Canaan under Joshua to the Baby- 
lonish captivity, lived in Canaan about 855 years. After the 
55 



434 PARADISE LOST. book xn, 

Gentiles call Jesus, bearing his name and office; who 
shall quell the adversary serpent, and bring back Man 
through the world's wilderness, who had wandered 
long there, safe to an eternal Paradise of rest. Mean 
while, they, placed in their earthly Canaan, shall dwell 
a long time, and prosper; but when national sins in- 
terrupt their public peace, provoking God to raise them 
up enemies, from whom, upon their being penitent, he 
as often saves them; first by judges, (a) then under 
kings; of whom the second (renowned both for piety 
and warlike deeds) shall receive an irrevocable pro- 
mise, that his regal throne shall endure, for ever: all 
the prophets shall prophecy the like; that of the royal 
stock of David (b) (for so I name this king) shall rise 

restoration, to the destruction of their temple, city? and nation 
by the Romans, in the 2d year o£ Vespasian, and 73d of Jesus 
Christ, about 639 years more; in all 1494 years. But their total 
and final expulsion out of that land was not until 60 years after 
that. But the kingdom of Israel, from its separation from Ju- 
lian to the end of it by Salmanaser, lasted but 250 years. 

(a) Judges; Lat. The Hebrew call them Sophehim: from 
whence the Carthaginians, Athenians, and others, called their 
civil magistrates Sussetes. Those judges were men of extraor- 
dinary piety, virtue, and valour, raised up upon extraordinary 
occasions, for the deliverance and defence of the people. They 
were 22 in number (but others reckon only 12, beginning with 
Othniel, Judg. iii. 9.) and continued, from Moses to Saul, their 
first king, about the space of 426 years. After them there were 
22 kings of Judah, in the space of 500 years, to the Babylonish 
captivity. 

(b) David; Heb. i. e. beloved; because he was pious, upright, 
and beloved of God. He was the son of Jesse of Bethlehem, a 
shepherd, the seeond king of Israel, anointed king about fifteen 
years of age, A.M. 2881, and after many troubles came to the 
throne, being thirty years old; he reigned forty years and six 
months. He died in the seventieth year of his age; and was bu- 
ried most magnificently by king Solomon. Hircanus, the high 
priest, found three thousand talents in his sepulchre, three hun- 
dred years afterwards, and Herod found a vast treasure in it, 



ghap. i. PARADISE LOST. 435 

a son, which is the seed of the Woman, which has 
been foretold to thee; and which, as I have already in- 
formed thee, shall be foretold to Abraham, as one in 
whom all nations shall put their trust; he shall be fore- 
told to kings, and himself shall be the last of kings; 
for of his reign there shall be no end. But, first there 
must ensue a long succession; and his next son, famed 
for wealth and wisdom, shall enshrine the ark of (rod 
in a glorious temple; until then resting under the cloud, 
or wandering in tents. Such kings follow him, as part 
shall be chronicled bad, part good; but mostly bad; 
whose foul idolatries, and other faults added to the sins 
of the people, will so incense God, that he will leave 
them, and expose their land, their city, his temple, and 
his holy ark, with all his sacred things, a prey and a 
scorn to that proud city whose high walls thou sawest 
left in confusion; thence called Babylon. There he lets 
them live in captivity the space of seventy years; then 
brings them back again; remembering mercy, and his 
covenant sworn to David. Being returned from Baby- 
lon, by the leave of kings who were their lords, whose 
hearts God disposed, they first rebuild the house of 
God, and live for a while moderate, in mean estate; 
until grown rich and populous, they grow factious. 
But the dissention first springs among the priests; men 
who attend upon the altar, and who mostly should en- 
deavour to keep peace; their strife brings pollution up- 
on the temple itself; at last they seize upon the sceptre 
and pay no regard to the house of David: then they lose 
it to a stranger, to Herod, (c) that the true anointed 

many ages after that. Three thousand talents were worth 50731. 
15s. 7d. But his vast treasure amounted to 547,500,000 ster- 
ling; and in silver to above 342,000,0001. See 1 Chron. xxii. 14, 
(c) Here Herod the Great, an Ascalonite or Idumsean. He 
was the first foreign prince that ever reigned in Judaea, deputed 
therein by the Romans, who had subdued the Jews; for then the 
jceptre actually departed from the house of king David, 



43G PARADISE LOST. book xn. 

king, the Messiah, might be born, debarred of his 
right: yet a star appearing at his birth, which had ne- 
ver before been seen in heaven, proclaims him come; 
and guides the wise men of the east to him, who in- 
quire the place where he was, to offer incense, myrrh, 
and gold: a solemn angel tells the place of his birth to 
the simple shepherds, as they kept watch by night; they 
gladly haste thither, and there was a multitude of the 
host of heaven, praising God, and singing songs of joy. 
A virgin shall be his mother, but he shall be begot by 
the power of the most High! he shall ascend his he- 
reditary throne, and the bounds of his kingdom shall 
be that of the whole earth; but his glory shall extend 
to the utmost heavens. 

Michael left speaking; perceiving Adam so full of 
joy, that if he had vented it with words, it would, like 
grief, have occasioned him to burst out into tears; so 
he addressed these to the angel: 

O Prophet! foretelling gladness and future good, to 
the utmost that can be desired or hoped for; now I 
understand clearly, what with all the power of my 
thoughts I have often searched in vain; why the great 
Redeemer that we expect, should be called the seed 
of Woman: hail virgin mother, high in the love of hea- 
ven! yet thou shalt proceed from my loins, and from 
thy womb shall proceed the Son of the most high God; 
so God unites with Man. Now is the time for the ser- 
pent to expect his final defeat, with mortal and ever- 
lasting pain. When, and where, will there fight be? 
and tell me, I pray thee, what stroke shall bruise the 
heel of the conqueror? 

To whom Michael made this answer: Do not ima- 
gine, that they are to fight as it were in a duel, or that 
there will be real wounds given or received, in such 
places as the head or heel: the Son of God does not 
join manhood to the godhead, that so he may overthrow 



chap. i. PARADISE LOST. 437 

thy enemy with more strength: nor is Satan so to be 
overcome, whose fall from heaven (which was a dead- 
lier bruise) did not disable him from giving thee thy 
death's wound; which he, who comes to be thy Sa- 
viour, shall cure again; not by destroying Satan, but 
by destroying his works in thee, and in thy seed. Nor 
can this be, but by fulfilling (that which in thee was 
wanting) obedience to the law of God, imposed on pe- 
nalty of Death, and by suffering Death; which is the 
penalty due to thy transgression, and due to all them 
that shall proceed from thee: it is by this only, that 
high justice can be fully satisfied. He shall exactly 
fulfil the law of God, both by obedience and by love; 
though love alone is the fulfilling of the law: he shall 
undergo thy punishment, by coming in the flesh to a 
reproachful life, and to a cursed death; proclaiming 
life to all those, who shall believe in his redemption; 
and that his obedience is imputed to them, becoming 
theirs by faith, that they are saved by his merits, and 
not their own works, though they may keep the moral 
law. For this he shall live hated, be blasphemed, 
seized on by force, have judgment passed on him, and 
be condemned to a shameful and ignominious death; 
be nailed to a cross by his own nation, and slain for 
having been so gracious as to bring life: but with him 
are crucified thy enemies, that is, the law that is against 
thee, and the sins of all mankind; which never more 
shall do them hurt, who righteously put their trust in 
this his satisfaction. So he dies, but soon rises again 
from the dead: he shall not remain long under the pow- 
er of Death; before the morning of the third day, he 
shall be seen to rise out of his grave, bright as the light 
of day; having paid the ransom which redeems man- 
kind from Death; his death for Man, to as many as do 
not neglect the offer of life, and will embrace the bene- 
fit of faith accompanied by works. This godlike act 



438 PARADISE LOST. book x,ij. 

repeals thy doom, the death thou shouldest have died; 
having through sin, lost and forfeited life for ever: this 
act shall bruise the head of Satan, crush his strength. 
by defeating Sin and Death, the two main instruments 
of his power; and fix their stings far deeper into his 
head, than temporal Death shall bruise the conquerer's 
heel, or theirs whom he redeems: how little will that 
be to suffer? a death-like sleep! a gentle and safe pas- 
sage to a glorious and immortal life! nor will the Re- 
deemer after his resurrection stay longer upon earth, 
than to appear certain times to his disciples; men, who 
in his life time continued to follow him: to them he 
shall leave in charge, to teach all nations what they 
had learnt of him and his salvation; baptizing all them 
who shall believe, with water, to be as a sign of wash- 
ing them from the guilt of sin to pure life, and prepare 
their minds for death; even such death (if it should 
so happen) as the Redeemer himself had died. They 
shall teach all nations; for, from that day forward, sal- 
vation shall not be preached only to the sons of Abra- 
ham, but to the sons of Abraham's faith, wherever they 
may be dispersed throughout the whole world; so, in 
his seed shall all nations be blessed: then he shall as- 
cend with victory up to the heaven of heavens, tri- 
umphing through the air over his foes and thine: there 
he shall surprise the serpent, the prince of the power of 
the air; drag him in chains through all his region, and 
leave him there confounded: then enter into glory, and 
take his seat again at the right hand of God, honoured 
and exalted above all names in heaven; and thence, 
when the time shall be for the dissolution of the world, 
he shall come with glory and power to judge both the 
quick and the dead; to condemn the unfaithful, but to 
reward the faithful, and receive them into bliss, whe- 
ther in heaven, or earth; for then the earth shall be all a 
Paradise, a far happier place than this of Eden, and 
where there shall be far happier days. 



<jHAr.li. PARADISE LOST. 439 

CHAPTER II. 

Jldam recomforted, descends the hill with Michael. 

Thus spoke the archangel Michael; then paused, 
as at the great period of the world; and our first fa- 
ther Adam, quite full of joy and wonder replied thus: 

O infinite and immense goodness! that shall produce 
all this good out of evil, and turn evil to good! more 
wonderful than that power, which by creation first 
brought light out of darkness! I stand full of doubt, 
whether I should now repent of the sin done and occa- 
sioned by me; or much rather, if I should not rejoice, 
that thereof shall spring much more good; more glory 
to God, more good will to men from God, and grace 
shall abound and overcome wrath. But tell me, if our 
Redeemer ascends again up into heaven, what will be- 
come of his few faithful ones, left among the unfaithful 
crowd, who are the enemies of truth? who shall then 
guide his people? who shall defend them? will they 
not deal worse with his followers, than they did with 
him? 

That (said the angel) they will certainly do; but he 
will send from heaven, to those who are his, another 
comforter, as was promised by the Father; who shall 
dwell in Spirit within them, and write upon their hearts 
the laws of faith working through love, to guide them 
in all truth; and also arm them with spiritual armour; 
able to resist the assaults of Satan, and to quench his 
fiery darts; making them not afraid of what men can 
do against them, though it should be persecution to 
death; being recompensed for suffering such cruelties, 
with inward consolation, and oftentimes shall be sup- 
ported so, as will amaze their proudest persecutors; for 
the Spirit, which first he will pour out upon his apos- 



440 PARADISE LOST. book xn, 

ties (whom he sends with the glad tidings of the gospel 
to all nations, and then upon all those who are bap- 
tized) shall endow them with wonderous gifts; to speak 
all tongues, and do miracles, as their Lord had done 
before them. Thus they gain over great numbers of 
each nation, joyfully to receive the news of salvation 
brought from heaven: at length, they having performed 
their ministry well, and run well the race that was set 
before them, writing their doctrines and the actions that 
they did, to serve for edification, they shall in time die: 
but in their room, as they themselves forewarn, griev- 
ous wolves, (d) shall succeed for teachers, who shall 
turn all the sacred mysteries of heaven to their own vile 
advantages of lucre and ambition, and taint the truth 
(which, though left pure in those written records, is not 
to be understood but by the Spirit) with superstition 
and traditions. Then they shall seek to aggrandize 
themselves with names, places, and titles; and with 
these to join secular power, though still feigning to act 
by spiritual; assuming to themselves only the Spirit of 
God, which is promised and given alike to all believ- 
ers: and, from that pretence, shall force upon every 
conscience spiritual laws by carnal power; laws! which 
none shall find in the written law of God, nor engraved 
by his Spirit within upon the heart. What will they 
do then, but force the Spirit of grace itself, and bind 
up liberty, which is inseparable from it? what, but de- 
stroy God's living temples by martyrdom, built to stand 

(d) Wolves; Sax. Dut. Teut. Gr. i. e. pernicious, lying hid, 
or white; because wolves are fierce, ravenous beasts of prey, 
that soon grow white; from the Heb. Lakach, i. e. to ravish, or 
snatch away violently. Here, false Christs, false apostles, which 
soon appeared, even in the days of the apostles; did then, and 
have done much mischief since to the church in all ages; by de- 
vouring the souls, bodies, and substance of men, by their perni- 
cious cruelties; as wolves destroy their prey. 



chap. ii. PARADISE LOST. 441 

by faith; that is, by their own faith, and not another's? 
(for who can we admit to be infallible upon earth, 
against our own faith and conscience?) yet many will 
take upon them, and presume to give law to other's 
faith; whence heavy persecutions (e) shall arise upon 
all, who persevere in the worship of God in spirit and 
in truth: the rest, which will be far the greater part, 
will think religion satisfied, in the performance of out- 
ward ceremonies and specious forms: truth shall re- 
tire, struck with reproach and many slanders, and 
works of faith be very seldom found among men. So 
shall the world go on, groaning under its burthen, and 
good men shall be oppressed and persecuted, while bad 
men flourish; until the day come, when just men shall 
rest from their labours and sufferings, and the wicked 
shall be awakened to vengeance; at the return of Him, 
who is to be the seed of the Woman, so lately promised 
to be given to thy assistance; then foretold obscurely, 
but now more fully known to be thy Saviour and thy 
Lord; who at last shall come down from heaven, in 
the glory of the Father, to dissolve the perverted world, 
and totally to subdue the devil: then, after the confla- 
gration, the whole mass being purged and refined, he 
shall raise a new heaven and a new earth, founded in 
righteousness, peace and love; which will bring forth 
fruits of eternal joy and happiness. 

(e) Persecutions; i. e. a pursuit; affliction, an unjust and 
cruel oppression of men to death. There have been ten perse- 
cutions for the cause of Christianity: Nero began the first, A.D. 
67; Domitian the second, A.D. 92; Trajan continued the third, 
A.D. 99; Hadrian continued the fourth, A.D. 124; Antonine 
began the fifth, A.D. 178; Severus the sixth, A.D. 203; Max- 
imums the seventh, A.D. 22G; Decius the eighth, A.D. 2&% 
Valerius the ninth, A.D. 257; and Dioclesian the tenth, A.D. 
303. This held ten years, and after his death it was continued 
by his successor, until Constantine, the first Christian emperor, 
established the Christian faith over the world. 
56 



442 PARADISE LOST. book xii, 

Here Michael made a pause, and Adam replied: 
Blest angel! in what short compass hast thou given me 
a satisfactory view of all things, from the beginning of 
time, until it shall finish its course? beyond which is 
the great length of eternity, whose end no eye can 
reach] I shall leave Paradise, greatly instructed, in 
great quietness of mind, and have as much knowledge 
as my nature is capable of receiving; beyond which I 
was so foolish as to aspire! henceforward, I learn, that 
it is best to obey and love the only God, with fear; to 
walk, as knowing I am always in his presence, always 
to observe his providence, and have my whole depend- 
dance upon him; who is merciful over all his works, still 
overcoming evil with good, accomplishing great things 
by small, subverting things of a worldly nature by 
things deemed weak, and worldly wisdom by simpli- 
city and meekness; that suffering for truth's sake is 
fortitude, the highest victory; and to the faithful, death 
so suffered is the gate of life: this I am taught by his 
example, whom I now acknowledge my ever blest Re- 
deemer! 

To whom the archangel, for the last time, made an- 
swer: Having learned thus much, thou hast attained 
the sum of wisdom; hope for nothing higher: though 
thou knowest all the stars by their names, and all the 
powers of heaven; all the secrets of the deep; all the 
works of nature, or of God, in earth, water, air, or fire; 
or though thou enjoy edst all the riches of this world, 
and ruled over it as one empire, only add deeds an- 
swerable to thy knowledge; add integrity, add virtue, 
patience, temperance, and love, hereafter to be called 
charity, which is the soul of all the rest; then thou wilt 
not be loath to leave this Paradise, but shalt possess 

within thyself a Paradise far happier! Therefore 

now let us descend from this hill, from whence I have 
hten shewing thee and foretelling future things; for this 



*hap. in. PARADISE LOST. 443 

is exactly the time that we must depart from hence: 
and see! the guards, which I have encamped upon 
yonder hill, expect orders for moving; before whom a 
flaming sword waves fiercely round in signal, that it is 
time for me to go. We must stay no longer here; do 
thou go and wake Eve; I have calmed her spirit with 
gentle dreams, foreboding good, and have composed 
all her spirits to meek submission. At a fit season, do 
thou inform her of what thou hast heard, chiefly what 
may concern her faith to know; make her sensible of 
the great deliverance which is to come, by her seed, on 
all mankind; (for so God pronounced it, " The seed 
of the Woman") that so ye may live all your days 
(which will be many) both unanimous in one faith, 
though, with reason, sorrowful for past evils; yet much 
more joyful in meditation on the happy end. 



CHAPTER III. 

Michael leads Jldam and Eve out of Paradise; the fery sword 
waving behind them, and the cherubim taking their station to 
guard the place. 

Michael, after this, spoke no more to Adam, but 
they both descend the hill; Adam ran before the angel 
to the bower where they had left Eve sleeping, intend- 
ing to wake her, as the angel had bid him; but he found 
her already risen from sleep, and with cheerful words 
she thus received him: 

I know whither thou wentest with the angel, and 
from whence thou art returned; for God is also with 
us whilst we sleep, and can communicate knowledge 
in dreams, which he hath to me, propitiously presaging 
some great good, since I fell asleep, wearied with sor- 



444 PARADISE LOST. book xh. 

row and distress of heart; but now I am cheered; lead 
on! I shall not desire to make any delay; to go with 
thee, makes it as happy as to stay here; to stay here 
without thee, as unhappy as to go hence unwillingly: 
thou art all things under heaven to me, and canst make 
all places alike to me; who art banished hence, on ac- 
count of my wilful transgression. Yet this farther con- 
solation I carry with me, that though all is lost by me, 
such favour is vouchsafed me, unworthy as I am! that 
by me the promised seed shall restore all. 

So spoke our first mother Eve, and Adam heard her, 
well pleased, but made no answer; for now the angel 
was come up to him, and stood too near; and from the 
other hill the cherubim all descended in bright array, 
to take their fixed station, gliding as an evening mist 
does over marshy ground. High advanced in the front, 
blazed before them the flaming sword of God, as fierce 
as a comet; which with sultry heat and vapours began 
to parch that temperate climate: at which the angel, in 
either hand, took our lingering parents, and led tbeni 
directly to the eastern gate; and then, as fast down the 
cliff, to the plain beneath; after which he immediately 
disappeared from them. They, looking back, beheld 
all the eastern side of Paradise, which had been their 
happy seat so lately, and saw the flaming sword wav- 
ing over it: the gate crowded with angels dreadfully 
armed with fire, and forbidding entrance. They shed 
some natural tears, but soon wiped them away: the 
whole world was before them, where to choose the 
place of their residence, Providence was their guide: 
and they, hand in hand, with slow and wandering steps, 
took their solitary way through Eden. 

THE END, 



SUBSCRIBERS' NAMES, 



TRENTON. 

Rev. James F. Armstrong, 
Rev. William Boswell, 
George Sherman, 
Thomas G. Sterling, 
William Scott, 
Archibald M'Kean, 
Richard James, 
Joseph Justice, 
Daniel Lake, 
John C. Moore, 
Thomas Blake, 
Lt. John Hollingshead, 
Peter Forman, 
Ephraim Reyno, 
Grace Dory, 
Samuel Newell, 
Dr. Nicholas Belville, 
Charles Burroughs, 
John Probasco. 
William Vail, 
Abraham Baines, 
John Beatty, jun. 
George M. Waldbergei, 
Ann Gordon, 
H. P. West, 
Asa Fish, 
Edmund J. Yard, 
David J. Coxe, 
Lucius H. Stockton, 
Daniel Coleman, 
Andrew Reeder, 
Daniel Fenton, 30 copies. 
William Vauhart, 
Ezekiel Howell, 
Charles Beatty, 



TRENTON. 

Elisha Furman, 
John C. Bellerjeau, 
John Nafeys, 
James Rodgers, 
Daniel M'Curdy, 
Richard Miller, 
Charles Cain, 
Daniel Ryall, 
James Emerson, 
William Fox, 
Ann Vankirk, 
Richard I. Bond, 
John Davisson, 
Keziah Walton, 
Mary Howell, 
Joseph Mattison, 
Jacob Mulford, 
Joseph M. Yard, 
George Miller, 
George E. Hutchinson, 
Elnathan Baldwin, 
Charles Howell, 
William C. Robinson, 
David A. Robinson, 
Samuel D. Potts, 
David Z. Moore, 
William Q. Phillips, 
Margaret P. Robinson, 
Charles Hollingshead, 
Abner Scudder, 
Seth Swift, 
Isaac Woodruff, 
Thomas A. Crussel, 
Josiah Yankirk. 



446 



SUBSCRIBERS' NAMES. 



■ 



Hi' 



LAMBERTON, 

Nathan Combes, 
Robert Appleton, 
Francis S. Labaw, 
John T. French. 



BORDENTOWN. 

James C. Sarmiento. 



BURLINGTON. 

David Allison, 
Thomas Armstrong. 



NEW BRUNSWICK. 

Mary Ellis, 

Charles D. Green & Co. 10 cop. 

Thomas Eastburn, 5 copies. 

Ralph Aikerman, 

Sarah Smock, 

Abraham Aikerman. 



PRINCETON. 

Appollos Harrison, 
Elijah Blackwell, 
Foster Wallers. 



AMWELL. 

William Marts, 
William Hortman, 
John Robinson, 
Nathan Price, 
James Snyder, 
Joseph Bosenberry, 
Adam Runkle, 
James Pyatt, 
Godfrey Wert, 
Rev. Jacob Kirkpatrick, 
Jane Geary, 
Daniel Mulford, 
Dr. John Bowne, 
Joseph Sergent, 
Gershom Lambert, 
Daniel Ent, 
Jacob Lambert 
John Lambert, 
Evan Godown, 
Enos Lanhins:, 



I Jacob Williamson 
i Abraham Servis, jun, 
\ Christopher Werts, 
\ William Prall. 



CROSS ROADS, 

John Buckalo, 
David Allen, 
Ann Bodine, 
Sarah Taylor, 
Jacob Falconer, 
James Moser. 



I KINGSTON. 

! Rev. D. Comfort. 

| WOODBRIDGE. 

| J. Monfort, 

I William Marsh, 

I Isaac Payne, 

| Margaret Vail, 

| Thomas Edger, jun. 



NEWARK. 

George Wilier, 
Nathaniel W. Samfort, 
Daniel Smith, 
Amos Salter, 
Susan Conger, 
Hetty Johnson, 
Phebe H. Combs, 
Jonathan Kean, 
John Austin Crane, 



William Tuttle, 2 copies. 



_• SOMERSET. 

Rev. Peter Labaw. 



% RAH WAY. 

\ John H. Morrison, 

\ Abel Clarkson, 

I Robert Shotwell, 

| Lewis Kelly, 

| John C. Marsh, 

! Simon A. Whitlock. 

\ Philip Mills, 

$ Rev. Buckley Carll 



SUBSCRIBERS' NAMES. 



m 



ELIZABETHTOWN. 

Elijah Kellogg. 

UNION TOWNSHIP. 

William Brown. 

CALDWELL. 

Philemon Bates, 
Henry Ogden, 

BERGEN COUNTY. 

Edward Jones. 

ESSEX COUNTY. 

Abiatha Dodd, 
Stephen Farrand, 
Jacob Bumsted, 
John Moore, 
Israel Downs, 
Jabez Baldwin, 
James Jacobus, 
Woodbridge Eaglesfield, 
Joseph Potter, 
John A. Viersted. 

ORANGE TOWNSHIP. 

Ichabod Lozy, 
Edmund Gammon, 
Frederick Gruet, 
Moses S. Harrison, 
Ira Munn, 
Joseph Munn, jun. 
Giles Mandeville, 
Josiah Leonard, 
David Condit, 
John Townley, 
Samuel Freeman, sen. 
William Young, 
Isaac Force, 
Phineas Jones, 
Benjamin Burton, 
David Jones, 
Stephen Baldwin. 

HACKENSACK. 

Samuel Durand, 
Jesse M. Chappie, 



| Abraham Hickhook, 

i John Varick, 

| M. Taylor, 

\ Abraham House, 

> Rev. James Romeyn, 

\ Dr. Ezekiel Webb, 

I John Van Bueren, 

I Thomas Sprigg, 

\ Stephen Sloat, 

$ James Wagner, 

I Ralph R. Kipp. 

HOPEWELL. 

\ Noah Titus, 

? John Hunt, 

> Levi Mokley, 

I Nathaniel Hart, sen. 

\ Andrew Muirheid, 

i Penelope Kerr. 

ROCKY-HILL, 

$ John Armstrong, 
Cornelius Simonson. 



MILLSTONE. 

Barnet Cornell, 
Garret Ditmars, 
Martin Schenck, 
£ Abraham Ditmars. 

S BOUNDBROOK. 

i Joseph Mollison, 

| Peter Smiley, 

I Michael Van Norden, 

> John Taylor, 

I James Cain. 



5 SLATTERDAM. 

\ Garret G. Van Wagoner, 
£ John Rogers, 
| Benjamin Zabriskie, 
i Jacob J. Zabriskie, 
\ Peter Doremas. 

ACQUACKAMONK. 

\ Andrew H. Clark. 



448 



SUBSCRIBERS' NAMES. 



MADISON PAPER MILL. 

Peter Morris, 
Daniel Sands. 



Farrand Kitchell, 
Appollos Prudden, 
Aaron Kitchell, 



BELVILLE. 

James Vandyck. 

MENDHAM, 

Peter Stryker, 
Usal Gould, 
Daniel Brown, 
William Orr, 
William A. Roleston, 
Rev. Amzi Armstrong, 
Dr. John W. Leeldre, 
George C. Dayton, 
Aaron Pitney, 
Jonas L. Willis. 

WASHINGTON VALLEY. 

Lefferd V. Colthar, 
Jacob Chandler. 

BARNARD TOWN. 

William Ay res, 
Michael Golder. 

MORRISTOWN. 

Moses Fairchild, 
Thomas L. Ming, 
Henry Beach, 
Abijah Cutter, 
Matthias Piersou, 
Israel"€J.ampfield, 
Samuel Dundass. 

SPRING VALLEY. 

Charles Burnet. 

HANOVER. 

Aaron Bale, 
Abijah Tuttle, 
Phebe Cooy, 
Harvey Hopping, 
Aaron T. Campbell, , 
James L. Baldwin, 
David Kitchell, 
Ambros Kitchell, 



ROCKAWAY NECK, 

James Lockward, 
Josiah Wines, 
Squire Leonard, 
Paul Leonard, 
Stephen Burnet. 

[ BERGEN. 

I Jacob K. Mead. 



PEQUANNONK. 

Ezekiel B. Gains, 
Joseph Willis. 

CALDWELL. 

| Dr. Ezra R. Squier, 
I Timothy Bale, 
J Nicholas Stagg, 
| Robert Powe. 

\ pattersontown, 

I Benjamin Wilier, 

I William Wier, 

I Robert Patterson, 

5 Joseph Thompson, 

| Robert M'Names, 

I John Rogers, jun. 

| John Parke, 

J Aaron King, 

I Thomas Howland. 

| SPRINGFIELD. 

\ William Pursil, 
I Ebenezer Woodrough, 
I Samuel Burnet, 
} Thomas F. Randolph, 
Cornelius P. Vanhouton 

MIDDLESEX. 

William Brittain. 

5 WESTFIELD. 

I Dr. Isaac Ludlow. 



SUBSCRIBERS' NAMES, 



449 



SUSSEX. 

Stephen Herd, 
John Worboss, 
Peter Trach, 
Thomas Marshall, 
Isaac Newton, 
Elijah Allen, 
John M'Murtrie, 
Adam Hibeller, 
Mary W. Jenks, 
A. Chichester, 
Barnabas Swayze, 
Ephraim Green, jun. 
Ezekiel Dennis, 
Charles Croxall, 
H. M<Miller, 
Francis Donlever, 
William Wilson, 
John Conolly, 
F. W. Pyncher. 

PISCATAWAY. 

Daniel Reeve, 
Samuel P. Page. 

NORTH BRUNSWICK. 

Enos Ayres, 
Michael Oglesbee, 
David Garro. 

KINGWOOD. 

Josiah Moore, 
John Mires, 
Samuel Butter, 
Gulielmus Roach. 

BIRAMTOWN. 

Charles Hamill. 

SHREWSBURY, 

Tylee Williams. 

BURLINGTON COUNTY 

Rev. David Bartine, 
Caleb Malsbury. 



GLOUCESTER. 

\ Daniel Carroll, 
f Isaac Pine, 
I Daniel Shaw. 

JERSEY CITY, 

I Israel Morford. 

MOORELAND; 

\ George West, jun. 

J MONMOUTH. 

S Abner Woodward. 

SALEM. 

i Samuel Edwards, 
I Amos Stiles. 



MACHIPONICK3. 

John L. Anderson. 



PHILADELPHIA. 

I Rev. John Walker, 

| Jonathan Pounder, 12 copies, 

* Jesse F. Cavet, 

S. Tizzard, 

Philip Miller. 

COLCHESTER. 

William B. Dickson, 
John White, 
Charles Bliss. 

BRISTOL. 

\ John Booz, 

I Thomas Leonard. 

\ UPPER MAKEFIELD* 

| Rebecca Knowles. 
| Ezra Smith. 
s Joshua Heston. 

I SOLEBURY, 

\ Buel Rowley, 

\ John Vandike, jtfn. 



5? 



450 



SUBSCRIBERS' NAMES. 



CHESTERTOWN. 

Jolm Wibble. 



| Henry Randell, 
£ John M. Satterly, 
< James Foster, 



LOWER MAKEFIELD. 

Michael Vanhart. 



NEWHOPE. 

Snyder Price, 
Hugh Dunn, 
Amos Sine. 



EASTOX. 

Melcliior Horn. 



ATTLEBOROUGH. 

Thomas Kitchin. 



fiULMEVILLK. 

Alonson Mead, 
Gilbert L. Michel, 
Isaac Hulme s 
Jacob Rightly. 
George Murray 
William Van IS T ortwick 



NEW-YORK. 

Rev. Thomas Ware, 
Benjamin Williams, 
John Dolmage 
Charlotte Hopkins, 
Joseph Geery, 
John Paradise, 
Peter Bourditt^ 
Jane Gednesy, 
Lewis E. Brown, 
Margaret Cambell, 
Furman Browne, 
Joseph Carpenter, 
John C. Totten, 
John Wood. 



FLORIDA. 

Thomas Johnson, 
Edward S. Madan, 
James Vail, 
James Jackson, 
Stephen Jayne. 



7 WARWICK. 

| James Twining. 
I Samuel Bodler, 
| Daniel Armstrong, 
I Thomas Armstrong. 



< ROCKLAND. 

I Hutchings Gardner. 

I 

| GOSHEN. 

< James Moore, 
| Patin Jackson, 
| Joel French, 

! Jeptha Gardner, 
Zina Beardsley, 
William Vantassel, 
Joseph Livingston, 
Thomas Edsall. 

| Robert Thomson, 

I Abraham H. Terwilliger, 

I William H. Ruber, 

I John Johnson, 



Youngs Bull. 



£ DEESTCHH. 

I Joseph Chattle. 



MONTGOMERY. 



| George S. Miller. 

§ CHESTER. 

\ Charles B. D inland. 



I NEWBERG. 

I David Johnson, 
I Andrew Andersort. 

| MINISINKc 

I Lewis Lambert, 
| Noah S. Carpenter. 

I BALTIMORE. 

I Rachael Colvin. 



\.Mi$ 



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